Never Saw It Coming
by Living to Laugh and Love
Summary: Scorpius had always wondered what he had done in his first year to make Al Potter hate him. He was friends with James and Lily and was on great terms with the rest of the Potter-Weasley family, but somehow he had never been able to win over Al. And this year he was determined to. He wasn't the first ever Gryffindor in his family for nothing. Al wasn't going to know what hit him.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the situations the characters find themselves in. All other characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"Merlin, Al! Lily! What on earth is taking you two so long?" James called from downstairs. "Mum and Dad are already in the car. Get your asses down here!"

Lily appeared at the top of the stairs, dragging her trunk behind her, somehow managing to roll her eyes as she huffed and puffed her way down. "The train only leaves at eleven James. As it is we are going to be there a half hour early."

"No we aren't." Ginny appeared at the door, hands on her hips, "We need to pick up your cousins today."

"Which cousins?" Lily asked, because really, there were too many of them.

"Rose and Hugo." James supplied, "ALBUS! Stop fussing with your hair and GET DOWN HERE!" He roared.

"Alright, alright. Don't get your knickers in a twist!" Al muttered as he walked down the stairs. Lily scowled at his empty hands, "Where's your trunk?!"

Al glanced at her own voluminous trunk beside her and smirked; "I gave it to Dad when he came up to tell us he would be out by the car."

Lily's expression darkened, "Damn it! I didn't think of that!" She mumbled as they were ushered out of the house by their mother.

Al sniggered, sliding into the backseat of the car, "And that, little sister, is why _you're_ in Gryffindor and _I'm_ in Slytherin."

Harry snorted from the driver's seat, "And to think there was a time when you were afraid of being sorted into Slytherin."

Al narrowed his green eyes, meeting his father's gaze in the rear view mirror, "You swore to stop bringing that up."

Harry's eyes twinkled as he chuckled, "And I keep meaning to stop, but it's just so much _fun_."

James laughed as he threw his left arm around his brother's neck and mussed up his hair with his right hand, earning a growl of protest from Al before he was shoved back against the door.

Al glared at him, his hands trying to undo what damage James had done, "I can't wait to get on the bloody train."

"Aw, don't be like that, Albus Severus." James said with a mock pout.

Al rolled his eyes, his lips tugging in a small smile as he looked to his mum, "Aren't you going to use an Extendable Charm on the back seat?"

"I'm actually tempted to let you all suffer." Ginny admitted, buckling her seatbelt.

"Mum!" Came the chorus of indignant cries.

"Oh look, Gin." Harry said, chuckling as he pulled out of the drive of his home, "They finally agree on something."

The three siblings exchanged long-suffering looks before rolling their eyes.

* * *

The time spent on Platform 9 and ¾ was as usual, chaotic. As soon as they walked in they spotted the rest of their family, loud and distinguishable because of the majority of red heads.

Harry chuckled, swinging an arm around his wife's shoulder, "Well, we know how to stand out in a crowd. That's for sure."

"I think it's impossible for us _not_ to stand out, Dad." Al said, nudging his father in the side, "What with us having 'The Chosen One'." He used air quotes as he said the last three words.

Harry blinked, the perfect picture of cluelessness, as he looked around the platform, "What? Really? Did he show up today? The rat bastard, always stealing my spotlight."

On cue, Al, Rose Lily and Hugo began laughing, long used to this joke now even as Ginny rolled her eyes and chided, "Language, Harry."

"Right. Sorry." Harry said, chuckling, "Where did James disappear to?"

"Here, Dad! Sorry for running off, I just went to say hello to Scor's dad." James said, walking up to them with his friend in tow.

"Hello, Mr Potter. Hello, Mrs Potter." Scorpius Malfoy greeted, stepping up to stop beside James, his lips curved in a charming smile. His long platinum blond hair that fell to his waist when loose, was tied back in a high ponytail, grey eyes glinting with the same mischievous light Harry often saw in Al's green ones. Funny, that his younger son was in the same year as the boy before him, and yet, it had been James who had befriended Malfoy. Although that may have something to do with the fact that against all odds, the Malfoy had been sorted into Gryffindor.

"Hello Scorpius. Did you enjoy your holidays? It's a shame you couldn't visit this year."

"Yes, I missed all of you." Scorpius said, his smile widening, "Please tell me you've packed some of your brilliant cookies in James's trunk, Mrs Potter."

Ginny laughed, charmed as usual by the boy, she had long ago decided not to hold her prejudices of the boy's grandfather against him. "Of course I did. I didn't want a letter tomorrow morning pleading for me to send some now, did I?"

"You're a gem!" Scorpius declared, leaning forward to kiss the woman on her cheek before turning to the rest of the family, straightening slightly as he did. His grey eyes met inscrutable green ones. Scorpius tried to open his mouth to greet the younger Potter male, but nothing came out. Green eyes narrowed then rolled before looking away to the train and lightening.

"Dad, I see Damien and Fran. I'll come back in a bit to say bye." Al said, sparing Malfoy a final glance before walking away in that signature way of his. It was a lazy stroll that Albus always used, which made onlookers think he was in no hurry to get where he was going. After all, it was clear from the look on the boy's face that he believed nothing to be so important that it couldn't wait for him.

Scorpius blinked, pulling out of his thoughts and focusing on James's cousin who was in his year, "Hi Rose."

"It's so good to see you, Scor!" Rose greeted, giving him a big smile, "How was France?"

Scorpius shrugged, "Oh, you know, French."

Hugo and Lily snorted, "You really have a way with words, don't you?" Lily asked, giggling.

"What exactly am I supposed to say?" Scorpius asked, arching a single brow.

"You could tell us about the French boys you met." Hugo suggested, a wicked smile on his face.

"And the French kissing you probably did with them." Rose added.

Scorpius looked between the two of them, mildly disturbed, "I'd really rather not."

"I'd really rather he not, as well." James chimed in, looking just as disturbed as Scorpius, "At the very least not in front of my parents."

The cousins, who had forgotten about their aunt and uncle, turned a bright red before stuttering out excuses and darting away from their family and toward the train.

"Think they will come back to say goodbye?" Ginny wondered, watching their backs disappear onto the train.

"Nope. They're gone. Speaking of which, I'm going too. So long parents! See you at Christmas!" Lily gave her father a tight hug and her mum a kiss on her cheek before going to board the train, her trunk pulled along behind her.

"We should be going too." James admitted, "Otherwise all the good compartments will be taken."

"Can't have that." Harry agreed, patting his son on the back before doing the same to Scorpius, "You boys have a good term. Don't get into too much trouble."

James scoffed, "Trouble? Us? Dad, you're talking to the wrong son."

"He's wrong because everything that's right came to me." Al quipped, strolling up to the group with a boy and a girl flanking him.

"We wanted to come say hi, Mr and Mrs Potter." The girl explained, smiling.

"Merlin, every time I see you Fran, you get more beautiful." Harry remarked, pulling his son's best friend into a hug, flashing a smile at the girl's boyfriend, Al's other best friend, "Nice to see you again, Damien."

"You too, sir."

"Scor! I didn't know you'd be here!" Fran cried, grinning at her childhood friend, wrapping an arm around his waist to give him a half-hug.

Scorpius grinned back at his friend, inquiring about her holiday as his grey eyes shifted once more to Al's face. He stood at the same height as Scorpius, but was looking resolutely away from him.

Scorpius wondered, not for the first time, what he had done exactly to earn the James's younger brother's ire. It had been like this from halfway through their first year. Up until then, from what Scorpius could remember, Al had been perfectly friendly. In fact, he had even seemed to enjoy Scorpius's company more than most. Something had gone horribly wrong between November and January though, because when the time came to board Hogwarts Express after their Christmas holidays, Al was no longer talking to him.

The train let out a shrill whistle of warning, signaling that it would depart in ten minutes.

"Bollocks, we're late." James whined, "There's going to be no room left. I hope Fred caught us a decent compartment."

"Actually, I saw Weasley sitting with his girlfriend and her friends." Damien said helpfully.

Scorpius sighed, "I guess we're sitting right by the engine then. Come on, James."

"You could just sit with us."

The suggestion was met with silence from both sides. Scorpius couldn't help but sneak a glance at Al…and he was right. Al looked livid as he glared at Francesca Zabini.

"That okay with you, Al?" James asked, well-aware of his brother's aversion to his friend.

Al turned to meet his brother's gaze, noting the warning in them, before letting out a long-suffering sigh, "It's fine. Come on." He muttered, heading for the train.

Already, Scorpius mused as he followed Albus and his friends to their compartment, this was turning out to be an interesting year.

* * *

"You were abominably rude on the train." Fran hissed, sinking her nails into Al's arms.

Al yelped, pushing her away, "Fuck! Fran! Cut your bloody nails!"

Fran gave him a sickly sweet smile, "Why would I? They make such brilliant weapons."

Damien chuckled, "Also, I quite like them."

Fran's smile turned genuine as she leaned to the side to peck her boyfriend on the lips, "Well yes, there's that too."

Al shook his head, watching the two of them in bemusement, "Get a room."

"We already have one. We thought we'd wait to go there until after dinner though, for your sake." Fran said, grinning at him.

"Your consideration warms my very soul." Al said, placing a hand over his heart.

Fran rolled her eyes, recognising the sarcasm, "Really though, Al. Don't you think you ought to get over whatever beef it is you have with Scor? He went out of his way to be nice to you on the train and you were an absolute troll."

"I don't know how many times I have to tell you this before you'll believe me." Al muttered, his dark mood from earlier returning, "I don't have any beef with Malfoy."

"And you're insulting my intelligent by thinking I'd actually believe you. You don't like him."

Al nodded, taking a bite of his dessert, "You're right, I don't. You'll notice I said I didn't have beef with him, not that I liked him."

Fran scowled speaking in harsh whisper, "But why don't you like him? He's charming and funny and sweet and fucking _gorgeous._ Not to mention he bats for the same team as you. If I were you, I'd love him."

"Francesca." Damien's reproach was soft but firm, noting the glint of anger in Al's green eyes, "This isn't the place."

"Why?" Fran asked, keeping her voice low, looking at Damien, "He's been hiding this for the past four years. Don't you think it's about time he told people?"

" _He_ is sitting right here, and would appreciate it if you didn't talk about _him_ like he wasn't." Al said through gritted teeth, setting his dessert down, "I'll see you in the dorms, Damien."

With that, Al got up from their house table and walked away. Fran's righteous anger faded into concern, "Did I push too hard?"

Damien sighed, "You just might have."

She groaned, pushing away her food as well as she folded her arms on the table and laid her head on them, "I just want him to be happy."

"He is happy, love. What makes you think he isn't? Al loves his life." Damien said, wrapping an arm around his girlfriend's shoulders and squeezing.

"Maybe he isn't unhappy, but Dai he isn't happy. Something is eating away at him. It's been like that for as long as we've known him. Don't tell me you haven't noticed."

Dai frowned, "Well, yes, alright, I've noticed he isn't quite rainbows and sunshine. But not everyone needs to be, love. Al has it in his head that he needs to live up to his father's name, and so he puts a lot of pressure on himself, and he beats himself up once in a while for not being good enough. But that's why we're there. To get him out of that funk. And I think we've been doing our part quite well."

Fran mulled over this. "I think he needs someone." She said earnestly, leaning into her boyfriend's side.

"You want him to need Scorpius." Damien guessed, combing his fingers through her hair.

Fran chuckled, glancing over the other house tables to the Gryffindor table. She could easily make out Scorpius at James's side with a few of his other friends, laughing and talking to one another. Every so often, his pale blond head would swivel in the direction of the Great Hall entrance. Fran followed his line of vision and found the entrance empty. She frowned, then sighed, shaking her head and looking back to Damien, "Well, that would be nice. Scor is an amazing guy and I know he'd take care of Albus."

"Fran, you need to let Al figure his life out. I know you mean well with your meddling, but he's too strong-willed to let someone tell him how to live his life. You know that."

Fran pouted, then sighed, "Yeah okay, you're right. Are you done?"

Dai looked at his empty plate and nodded, "Yeah, I'm done."

"Then come on. I need to go apologise to Al."

* * *

 **I've read SO much Al and Scorpius fiction, and I absolutely love the pairing. That being said, this is my first time writing slash, and my first time writing fanfiction so please be kind. :) I've tried to stick to the facts of the original seven books as much as possible.**

 **Do read and review!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

The first few days of the new year went off in the usual way. Scorpius had a full schedule of Potions, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration, Arithmancy, Charms and Ancient Runes. He was still playing around with what he wanted to do once he was out of school so he really couldn't afford to drop any of his subjects. Who knew what skills he'd need?

He was walking to his first Potions class, a double-hour lesson with Slytherin, when he ran into Al, literally. He'd been walking backwards as he spoke to his friends, not really paying attention to his surroundings. He did this regularly, and usually, people moved out of the way when they saw him coming. Al had obviously not been paying attention either and this led to him walking headlong into Scorpius's back, his nose hitting the back of Scorpius's head quite hard, jarring him into falling back, even as Scorpius stumbled forward.

"Fucking hell!" Al cursed, bringing his hand up to his nose, "Watch where you're going, Malfoy!"

Had it been anyone else who had spoken to him in that way, Scorpius would have retaliated, but it wasn't anyone else. It was Albus. Albus who had not spoken to him in five and a half years. Albus who had barely acknowledged him all the times he had gone to the Potter house for Christmas and the summer over the years. Albus who really couldn't stand his guts and whose opinion Scorpius really wanted to change. And breaking Al's nose with the back of his head wasn't going to win him any points.

He dropped to his knees in front of the boy, ignoring the slight throb of his own head, as he pulled Al's hands away from his face, sighing in relief when he saw that there was no blood, "It doesn't look bad." He said, a smile tugging his lips as he looked down at the other boy.

Al blinked at the smiling blond before him. Sure, Al had accepted in some corner of his head that Scorpius's smiles were as deadly a weapon as Fran's nails, but this was really the first time in a long time he had one of those smiles aimed at him. For him. Shaking his head, Al frowned, pushing himself off the ground and standing, narrowing his green eyes as he met apologetic grey ones.

Muttering murderously under his breath, Al just picked his bag off the floor and stalked away, not sparing the Gryffindor another glance.

Scorpius sighed, picking himself up off the floor, turning to find his friends giving him very odd looks. He looked down at himself to see if something had torn in his encounter with Al, but found everything just the way it had been before. He frowned at Frank Longbottom and Lorcan Scamander, "What?"

"Nothing." Both boys said, exchanging glances as they spoke. Then, in an effort to change the subject, Lorcan took his friend's arm and tugged him toward the dungeons, "So, Al still can't stand you, huh? What exactly did you do to him?"

Scorpius scowled, "Shut up, Lor. You know I've done absolutely nothing. He just...doesn't like me."

"More like he hates you." Frank quipped, earning a glare from his best friend, "It was bound to happen though. Every other chick and bloke in Hogwarts loves you. No one gets to be universally loved."

"I am not universally loved." Scorpius said, rolling his eyes.

"You're right. If you were, Al would like you." Lorcan said, grinning as he dodged a well-aimed punch to his side.

Scorpius would have tried again but they arrived at their classroom and filed in, taking the same seats they'd been sitting in since their third year. Rose, the fourth member of their table, was standing across the room, chatting with her cousin and his friends. She sauntered over when Slughorn entered the classroom, taking her seat next to Frank.

"So Scor, I forgot to ask you before, but why did Justin Smith look like he wanted to punch you out at lunch yesterday?" Rose asked as Slughorn went into his usual welcome spiel.

"Oh." Scorpius couldn't help his grin, "I've been avoiding him since school started."

"How come? I thought you both were friends." Rose said, frowning.

"Well, we weren't so much friends as friends with benefits." Scorpius explained with a chuckle, "And I called that off over the summer saying I'd found myself a French guy."

"Did you find yourself a French guy?" Rose asked, curious.

"No. I just knew he wouldn't let me end it unless I told him I was with someone else." Scorpius said, his smile turning sheepish, "I was kind of using him and my conscience caught up with me."

"Using him for sex, right?" Lorcan asked, a bemused grin on his face, "If you had told me three years ago that I'd be talking to my best mate about gay sex, I would have hexed you."

Scorpius gave his best friend a bright smile, "It's a good thing that the only thing I told you three years ago was that I'm gay."

"Did Smith really _mind_ being used for sex, though?" Rose asked, brows raised in question.

"Well, no. He didn't. I just-it's just-I feel like I'm on the verge of meeting someone. And I don't want Smith to be in the way then." Scorpius admitted, his cheeks flushing slightly with colour. It took all his effort to not to glance towards Al as he spoke.

"…with Mr Malfoy, since if today is any indication, he will need help to remain focused on the subject."

Scorpius started, looking to the front to find the teacher, and most of the class looking back at him. Even Al, who usually took great pains to _avoid_ looking at him, was staring at him with something akin to horror.

Before Scorpius could speak, Al had stood up, "Professor Slughorn, I've always been paired with Damien in Potions. He is pants at it!" There was a tinge of desperation in his voice that Scorpius did not yet understand.

Damien looked like he was contemplating protesting to the insult before he just nodded glumly, "He's right, Professor. I'd be getting a T in Potions without Al. I need him as my partner."

Al seemed to relax slightly, giving his best friend a wide smile for his support.

Slughorn was having none of it though, he just shrugged, "I'm afraid my decision is final Mr Potter. Please move your things to Mr Scamander's place. You can help Mr Malfoy with his grade instead, and Mr Scamander can work with Mr Holt. I think sixth year is a great time to be making new friends. On with it, boys."

Scorpius didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he cottoned on to what was going on. Slughorn was making Al his Potions partner. He was going to have at least four hours every week where Al _had_ to speak to him. It was going to make Potions even harder than it already was for him, but maybe he could finally make some headway in getting Al to like him! Scorpius managed to bite back his grin in the last minute as Al sullenly sat down beside him.

"In fact, I think I'm going to shuffle everyone's partners. You lot are getting too set in your ways. Let's see, Ms Weasley, you can work with Ms Zabini. Mr Longbottom with Mr Nott." As Slughorn went on, Scorpius felt the glares of every single member of the class on him and he sank down in his seat, "Bloody hell." He muttered, "I'm not going to make it out of here alive, am I?"

Al snorted next to him, "I wouldn't count on it."

* * *

"Can you believe Slughorn went and shuffled everyone's partners in my class?" James asked indignantly, stomping into the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Ours too!" Lily cried in outrage, scowling, "I have to work with that stuck up ass, Kevin Flint."

Scorpius would have sank lower into his seat, but any lower and he would be in danger of disappearing. Beside him, Lorcan sniggered, picking up on his unease.

"Who the hell got it into his thick head that we were 'too set in our ways'?!" James's girlfriend, Nicola, growled, throwing her bag down by the fire and throwing herself onto the couch beside James.

"It's Malfoy's fault." Said a voice that had Scorpius straightening in his seat and looking to the entrance to the common room. Sure enough, there stood Al, his jet black hair styled to look artfully messy, his school robes gone. Instead, he was dressed in a well-fitting black tee and wonderfully snug blue jeans. Scorpius wondered if he would get a chance to see Al's ass in those jeans...which led him to wonder about Al's ass _out_ of those jeans, and really those weren't thoughts he ought to have. At least not while in the same room as Al's younger sister and older brother.

"What are you doing here?" James asked immediately before Al's words registered and his mouth dropped open, "What? Scor?! Is that true?" He turned to glare at his friend who just gave him a sheepish smile.

"It's true." Lorcan confirmed, earning an elbow in his side, "Oof! He wasn't paying attention in class and Slughorn thought this was a good way to teach him a lesson."

"I could murder you, Scor." Lily said, narrowing her eyes at him.

Scorpius held up his hands in surrender, "I didn't think he'd do it to every year Lils. I didn't even realise he was punishing me until after it was done."

Nicola snorted, "What in the wizarding world was so important that you didn't hear Slughorn punish you?"

"He was talking about gay sex." Lorcan supplied, laughing as he dodged his friend's elbow, "You know, Scor, you keep that up and I'll be black and blue."

"Well, you'd deserve it." Scorpius quipped, his eyes flitting to Al who was still standing by the entrance looking extremely uncomfortable now. His hands were in the pockets of his jeans and his shoulders were hunched as his green gaze rested on his siblings. Then, as if sensing his gaze, Al looked up to meet his eyes, immediately straightening and scowling, "I don't have all day Malfoy."

Scorpius raised a single brow, "You're here to see me?"

"Is there another Malfoy I'm being forced to help out with Potions?" Al asked sarcastically, matching his expression with a single raised brow of his own.

"Oh. Right." Scorpius felt a shiver of delight run down his spine. Study sessions with Al. _Alone._ "I'll be right back." He told his friends, getting up of his seat and making his way to Al. As he did, Al turned to leave the common room, choosing to wait for him by the portrait of the Fat Lady.

When Scorpius stepped up to stand beside him, Al took a step back, "Right. So exactly how bad are you at Potions?"

"Better than Holt." Scorpius said, a small smile curving his lips, "But that doesn't really say much, does it?"

Al pursed his lips as he studied the boy before him. Fran was right, he acknowledged silently. Scorpius Malfoy was pretty fucking gorgeous. The fine, silky straight blond hair tied back in that sleek high ponytail; his delicate features that were complemented brilliantly by large silver eyes; his tall, lean but definitely well-muscled body that filled out his clothes ridiculously well; and that earring on his right ear, the only link to his family's roots which were steeped in Slytherin, a coiled, poised-to-strike, black snake. If Malfoy had been just another guy, Al was man enough to admit to himself that Scorpius would have been able to coax Al into coming out of the closet and getting into a relationship. As it stood though, he wasn't. He was Scorpius Malfoy, and Al really wanted nothing to do with him. It was time he made that very clear to the other boy.

"Listen, I get that you're trying to cultivate the image that you're this completely wonderful guy who just genuinely wants to be decent to everyone, but you can cut the crap with me. Stop trying to be friendly, stop talking to me about anything not related to class, and stop trying to pretend I'm not a complete dementor to you whenever we meet. I have enough friends, so I really don't need you." Al paused, noting that the smile had faded from the handsome boy's face. Good. "That being said, Slughorn made it clear that we were supposed to work together and since Lorcan has agreed to help Damien out with his grade, I figure I should return the favour. So let me know when you want to meet up to study. We can meet in the library or in either of our common rooms. I think I can manage twice a week in the evenings. Sound good to you?"

Scorpius had honestly stopped listening a while ago. He was just staring at Al now, in complete and total disbelief. Because really, what the fuck had he ever done to deserve such animosity? He had broken his head over it so many times over the years and really, he was done with it. Al wanted him to cut the crap? He was going to cut the crap.

Al started as large hands curled around his upper arms, the strength in those hands pushing him back against the portrait of the Fat Lady, earning a squawk of protest from her. Al opened his mouth to join her in protesting when he suddenly found himself caged in between Scorpius's arms, the other boy's body inches away from his, his elbows resting on either side of his head, his face too close for comfort. Seeing those silver eyes at such close range made it difficult for Al to breathe, and all he could do was stare at Scorpius, wide-eyed.

"I don't know what the fuck I ever did to you, Potter. You've been a right git to me since our first year and I honestly don't know why. You have no fucking right to treat me the way you do." Scorpius's voice was sinister and dark, not more than a whisper, and it sent a shiver of excitement down Al's spine. "You want me to cut the crap? I'll cut the crap. I don't care if you want me to stop being friendly to you. I don't care if you want me to not talk to you about anything but Potions. Because I'm going to. You think you don't need me? Well, I'll change that. And at the end of this, you'll need me, and I'll know what the fuck your problem has been all these years. I'm not giving up. Do you understand?"

Al felt his pulse stutter as he stared into Scorpius's determined grey eyes. He was serious. Of course he was serious. He wasn't going to give up. And for some bizarre reason, there was a tiny part of Al that was happy about this. Pushing that part of him to the side, Al schooled his features to look less astounded and more irritated, placing his hands on Scorpius's chest and pushing him back. "Let me know which days would be good for you." He said stiffly, sidestepping Scorpius and walking away. He felt the Gryffindor's gaze burn into his back as he left.

* * *

 **Okay, so I'll start with two chapters. Let me know what you think!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"Scor!" Fran cried, grinning in delight, "Are you going to sit with us again today?"

Scorpius gave her a charming grin, "I was thinking about it. Rose and Lily wanted to tag along as well."

"It's just that you've got me incredibly curious." Lily said, sliding into the empty space beside her brother as Scorpius sat next to Fran and Rose took the seat on Albus's other side. "What exactly is so great about eating at the Slytherin table? You've been spending a lot of time here lately."

Al's jaw tightened as he noted the truth of her words. It had begun a week after his face-off with Scorpius. The Gryffindor had, cool as cucumber, walked up to their table during dinner and asked if he could sit with them. Fran had been surprised, Damien curious, and Al stoic. His stoicism hadn't wavered once in the two weeks that had followed of Scorpius joining them for dinner. Not that it seemed to bother the other boy at all. No, he just turned around started eating lunch with them as well! Add that to the hours they spent together in Potions and outside class studying for Potions; Al was seeing a lot more of Scorpius than he really wanted to.

He was bound to get annoyed at some point, Al reasoned, as he took a bite of the Sheppard's Pie in front of him. It had to be frustrating to keep throwing questions at someone only to get nods, shakes of the head, or one-word answers. Fran had already told him off for his behaviour extensively, but Al's stubbornness and pride came into play here.

Just who did Malfoy think he was to talk to Al the way he had? And did he think that just because he wasn't going to give up, Al would entertain thoughts of being friends with him?

"How was class today, Al?" Rose asked, serving herself a slice of pie.

Al opened his mouth to reply then paused. God dammit! He slid his gaze to Scorpius and felt his temper spike as he saw the smug smile on the Gryffindor's face. So Scorpius had managed to find a loophole in their little game. Al knew he couldn't be blatantly rude to Scorpius in front of Rose and Lily the way he could be in front of James or his friends. This was because Rose and Lily had access to his mother and had no qualms about informing her of his behaviour if and when he annoyed them. Al had got quite a few Howlers over his years at Hogwarts because of the two of them.

Well, Al mused, just because he had to talk didn't mean he had to talk to _Scorpius._ "It was okay. I have a test in Transfiguration next week, so I've been spending my spare time in the library studying." He told his cousin, grimacing.

"We have the test too. McGonagall assigned it to us just last hour." Rose said, frowning, "I should start studying for it as well. I hate Vanishing spells."

"Why don't we all meet up in the library after dinner? We can help each other practise until curfew." Scorpius suggested innocently, inwardly cheering. Al had walked right into that one.

"Oh!" Lily's face lit up, "Could you lot help me with my work as well?"

Rose made a clucking noise as she looked to her younger cousin, "Lily, don't you have friends your own age?"

"Sure I do." Lily said sticking her tongue out, "Your brother."

Rose rolled her eyes, only then seeming to notice Al's dangerously still posture. She frowned, "Al? Are you alright?"

"I'm bloody brilliant." Al muttered, pushing his plate away from him and grabbing his bag, "I just remembered there's a letter I need to post."

"Are you going to the Owlery then?" Scorpius asked, "I'll come with you. I have a package that I need to send to Mother."

It was a testament to his control that Al didn't curse Malfoy right then and there. Instead he glowered at the other boy and started to walk away, knowing Scorpius would catch up before he made it out of the Great Hall. There would be no shaking the Gryffindor off. Not right now anyway.

Once they were outside, the two boys set off towards dungeons by silent agreement, keeping pace with one another. Al finally cracked halfway there, whirling around and glaring at the other boy, "What is your problem?" He asked, steel in his voice.

Scorpius smiled that ridiculously charming smile of his; leaning back against the wall of the corridor they were in, "You're forgetting, I'm not the one with the problem. That, my friend, would be _you_."

Al rolled his eyes as he continued on his way, "We aren't friends."

Scorpius pretended to mull over that, "You're right. We aren't. We're just two people who are suddenly spending a ridiculously large amount of time together."

"We're only spending time together because you won't leave me alone." Al pointed out bluntly. "I don't even talk to you."

"You're talking to me now." Scorpius couldn't help but point out gleefully.

Al sighed, "That's because I'm sick and tired of whatever game it is you're playing." He stopped walking and turned to Scorpius once more, "What? Did I hurt your pride by telling you that I truthfully wanted nothing to do with you? Is that why you are hell bent on stalking me?"

"You have a large ego, don't you Potter?" Scorpius mused, "I hardly think I'm stalking you. I'm just giving you the opportunity to get to know me."

Al ran his hands through his hair, a sure sign of complete frustration, "Why don't you understand that I don't _want_ to know you, Malfoy? You have the rest of my family wrapped around your little finger. Is that not enough for you?"

Scorpius blinked at the reference to the Potter-Weasley family. Hm, he thought, that's certainly interesting. Shaking himself he focused on answering Al's question, "Honestly? No, it's not."

That comment gave Scorpius the supreme satisfaction of seeing Albus Potter dumbstruck. Al opened and closed his mouth a few times and then his green eyes filled with confusion, "What did you just say?"

And since he didn't mind repeating himself, Scorpius obliged, "It's not enough that I have your family wrapped around my little finger. I want you." And when he saw Al flush at his words he berated himself and quickly rectified his statement, "I mean, I want to be your friend."

"Why?!" Al asked, not understanding at all, "Where is your bloody pride mate? I've been nothing but awful to you for the past six years and you've been nothing but nice. I've ignored you intentionally more times than I can count. And I've told you twice in the last three weeks that I want nothing to do with you! Why in the wizarding world would you want _anything_ to do with me?!"

"Because I think you'd be worth it." Scorpius answered simply.

Al blinked, noting the completely serious look on the other boy's face before sagging back on the wall opposite Scorpius. He couldn't stop his cheeks from flushing with colour again as he replayed what had just been said in his mind. A light laugh left him as he shook his head and met the Gryffindor's gaze once more. There was something softer about it now, something warm in those silver eyes that seemed to be there solely for Albus. Al sighed, knowing when he was beaten.

"Do you not get embarrassed? Saying things like that to someone who could very well tell the entire school what a sentimental troll you are?" Al asked, a small smile curving his lips.

Sensing victory was at hand, Scorpius grinned, "You wouldn't. You aren't that kind of person."

"And you know that, how?" Al asked sceptically.

Scorpius chose his words carefully, after all he couldn't give away just how closely he'd been watching Al all these years. "I may not know it, but I sense it."

Al pushed himself off the wall, studying him for a long moment before shaking his head with another sigh, "You have good senses, clearly. Fine, you've worn me down. We can try."

Scorpius straightened, his heartbeat picking up its pace. "Try what?" He asked, needing to hear it from Al's lips.

Al gave him a dry look, "Try being friends."

Scorpius held out his right hand, "You won't regret it."

Al slowly let his hand slide into Scorpius's grip, "We'll see."

* * *

" _Evanesco_." Al glared at the piece of parchment that simply refused to disappear. This was his fifth try and he was becoming extremely frustrated. Scorpius, who had vanished his parchment in his first try, watched him work, a small, amused smile on his face.

"Will you ask me for help _now_?" Scorpius asked, fighting the grin that threatened. Four days had gone by since Al had reluctantly accepted his hand of friendship. And in those four days Scorpius had discovered that Al was as bad in Transfiguration as he was in Potions. Not that Al would ever admit to that, of course.

"Rose, would you tell Malfoy that if he valued his life he would stop gloating?" Al growled at his cousin, not even looking at the other boy.

Rose's lips twitched as she fought a smile of her own, but she dutifully conveyed Al's message to Scorpius, even though he had heard the entire exchange.

Scorpius rolled his eyes, "Really, Potter. I knew you were stubborn, but there has to be a limit."

Fran snorted, "Oh Al's stubbornness is quite legendary to anyone who knows him."

" _Snufflifors_." Lily said, successfully transfiguring her book into a mouse. "Once when he was twelve, Al got lost when we went camping and he couldn't find his way back to the campsite. Dad had told us that if something like that happened we had to send up a flare and he would come get us. Al didn't want to admit he was lost, so he just wandered around the woods looking for our camp. He was missing for three whole days before the aurors finally found him."

Al couldn't help but grin at the memory, "They were so happy I was alive that they forgot to punish me." He recalled, chuckling.

Scorpius looked at him, aghast, "Did you seriously risk death because you were too stubborn to admit you were lost?!"

"I wasn't lost." Al said, scowling, "I just got turned around a bit."

Scorpius couldn't help a short laugh, staring at Al, "You're a complete nutter." He informed Al.

Al snorted, rolling his eyes, trying to focus on his parchment once more. " _Evanesco_." He tried again, only to get the same result. He collapsed back into the chair behind him. "I give up. I'm just going to fail this test."

Scorpius moved his chair so he was sitting closer to Al, "You wouldn't fail if you just let me help." He leaned closer so his side was pressed up against Al's, "I even know what you're doing wrong." He taunted in a singsong voice.

"You are really touchy-feely, you know that?" Al asked, trying to sound annoyed but not quite managing it. He should be annoyed that Scorpius was constantly touching him, however innocently, but he really wasn't. It just seemed to be a part of what made Scorpius, Scorpius. And Al was okay with that. Maybe even more than okay.

"So I've been told." Scorpius admitted slowly, leaning away from the Slytherin boy, his cheeks flushing in embarrassment, "I'm sorry, does it make you uncomfortable? I can stop."

Al chuckled, shaking his head, "No, it's alright. I was just making an observation. But it's nice to see that stuff does embarrass you."

Scorpius scowled, "Shut up. Do you want me to help or not?"

Damien yawned from where he was sitting, "Let him help, Al. I'm sick of the library. I want to go to bed."

"And I want to go to bed with him." Fran agreed, earning giggles from Rose and Lily and mildly disgusted look from Al and Scorpius.

"I really truly want to have no knowledge of your sex lives. Please, spare me." Al begged, throwing an arm over his eyes dramatically.

Scorpius chuckled, "It's disturbing to think that my childhood friend is having sex so I'm going to agree with drama queen here."

Fran raised a single brow, "Oh, like you're a virgin? Please Scor, I've had to come to terms with the fact that you have sex, so you can deal with this." She shuddered, "I still get nightmares about it."

"You saw Scor having sex?" Lily asked, a laugh in her voice.

"How do you even _know_ about sex? You're way too young, Lils." Al said, frowning as he looked at his younger sister.

Lily rolled her eyes, "I'm fourteen, Al. I don't live under a rock. Now shush! I want to hear Fran's story!"

Scorpius felt a wave of unease at the thought of Al hearing this story and tried to protest, "Um, maybe some other time? Fran wanted to head out anyway."

Fran looked at him quizzically, "I don't mind telling them the story before I leave. Unless someone here has a problem with hearing it."

Silence met her statement. Scorpius couldn't help but glance at Al who sensed his gaze and looked to him. Those green eyes looked almost gold in the torchlight of the library and Scorpius saw no emotion in there that indicated that Al would be averse to hearing a story about him shagging someone. And though that ought to make him happy, happy that Al seemed to accept him and his sexuality, Scorpius felt a pang of disappointment. He looked away from Al, frowning slightly, what was that about?

Fran was already halfway through her story before Scorpius tuned back into his surroundings.

"...noises, but I thought he just had another friend over. Turns out he did have another friend visiting, and he was on the bed under him. Thank Merlin the sheets covered up the bottom half of their bodies, or I might have been scarred for life. As it is I don't think I could look at Simon Lee the same way again."

Everyone burst into laughter except Al, who was looking over at Scorpius with an incredulous expression on his face. Scorpius felt his heart beat out of his chest as he ran a hand nervously through the ends of his ponytail, "Y-You knew I was gay, right Potter?"

Al waved away his question, "Simon Lee? Really? He looks like a cross between a minotaur and a hippogriff!"

And this of course only resulted in more squeals of laughter until finally Madam Trousseau came to their table and asked them to leave in her stern voice.

And as they made their way down to the Great Hall to finish up their studying, only one thought kept running through Scorpius's head. Al had paid attention to men enough to note that Simon Lee was rather unfortunate looking. What did that mean?

* * *

 **Please do leave a review :) Hope you liked the chapter!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"When are the quidditch try-outs going to be for Slytherin?" Scorpius asked one day as he lounged on the couch in the Slytherin Common Room where he and Al had taken to spending much of their time.

"When were the try-outs for your house?" Al asked, not looking up from the parchment on which he was writing.

"Last month."

"Then I'd imagine ours are over as well."

"What?" Scorpius sat up, looking to the boy who was slowly becoming his favourite friend, "Why didn't you tell me? I could have come and cheered you on."

Al snorted, "Well for one, we weren't friends last month."

"Correction: you were trying to not be my friend last month."

Al gave him a long-suffering look, "I didn't try out this year."

"You didn't...what?" Scorpius stared at Al, not comprehending what he was saying, "But you love quidditch!"

Al raised a questioning brow, his expression clearly asking Scorpius how he knew this fact. Scorpius flushed but didn't offer an explanation, instead waiting for Al's response.

"I don't love quidditch. I've actually hated it the past four years I've been on the team. I play fairly well, but the only reason I kept getting selected is because each year the captain assumed that since I was Harry Potter's son and so I should be great at seeking. They didn't even have me go for try-outs most of the time."

Scorpius let this information sink in, frowning slightly as he looked back up at his friend, "So you decided not to be on the team this year?"

Al's lips curved in a kind of bitter smile, "Not exactly."

Scorpius felt a tug on his heart and reached out to hold his friend's hand, squeezing it lightly, "What happened, Al?"

Al blinked at the sound of his first name. Up until now both of them had been careful to refer to one another as 'Potter' or 'Malfoy'. This was the first time Scorpius had called him 'Al'. Al found that he preferred it.

"I'd always asked Dad not to come for my games because I knew he'd take one look at me playing and know I wasn't enjoying myself, but he came for Gryffindor match last year. And after he watched me he took me aside and told me not to play if it wasn't something I loved doing." Al shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand as he sat back from his parchment.

Scorpius remembered that game. He played on the Gryffindor team as the Keeper and he had always been hyperaware of Al's actions. He had seen Al slip away from the grounds with his father, but he hadn't seen them return.

"Why did you play it for four years if you didn't like it?" He asked, not understanding Al's reasoning for this.

"It's what Potters do." Was Al's seemingly simple answer. But in that answer Scorpius sensed a whole mess of problems.

He frowned, "What does that mean?"

Al regarded him for a long moment, as if wondering whether or not to answer Scorpius's question. He finally sighed, "It means that everyone in my family plays quidditch. Even Lily secured herself a place on the Gryffindor team last year."

Scorpius stared at his friend, his brows furrowing in concern. Surely Al realised no one in his family expected him to do what they did. In fact, it was one of the things Scorpius loved most about Al's parents. They allowed their children the freedom to be who they wanted to be and do what they wanted to do. Draco Malfoy had always had a particular dream in mind for Scorpius. Though that dream had shattered when Scorpius had been sorted into Gryffindor and then later discovered he was gay. Scorpius shook his head slightly and focused on Al once more.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to, Al." Scorpius shifted closer to his friend, wrapping an arm around his shoulder, "There's nothing wrong with not liking quidditch."

He had thought he was being comforting, but the way Al froze up beside him before he got up and began packing his things indicated that Scorpius's words had had the opposite effect.

"Of course you don't understand." Al mumbled, shaking his head, wondering what had possessed him to reveal as much of himself as he had to Scorpius in that moment. He hadn't even told Fran and Dai about this.

"Al-"

"I'm feeling really tired. I think I'll skip dinner today. Goodnight, Malfoy." And then he was gone.

Scorpius sat in his seat long after Al was gone and marvelled that what had hurt him the most in that exchange was the fact that Al had still referred to him as 'Malfoy'.

* * *

"Are you and Scor fighting?" Fran asked finally, her curiosity getting the better of her.

It had seemed like, for the past few weeks, Al and Scorpius had been practically inseparable. They had meals together, were Potions partners, hung out in the library and every so often spent time with Al's Slytherin friends or Scorpius's Gryffindor friends. Fran had asked Al about it initially, and he had said he was giving being friends with Scorpius a try. When he had seen the excited gleam in Fran's eyes he had assured her, in a wry tone, that friends was about as far as he would ever be willing to go with Malfoy. But a girl could dream.

For the past three days though, something seemed off. The two boys were still together all the time, but the easy camaraderie that had sprung up between them seemed to be missing. Al was more reserved and Fran could tell that Scorpius was clueless on how to fix their friendship. Which made Fran wonder, what exactly had Scorpius done to set off Al's defences?

"No." Al said simply, his eyes opening briefly to rest on her face before closing once more. It was the weekend and Dai, Al and Fran had decided to soak up some sunlight. They were sprawled out on the front lawn under the sun side by side. Damien was reading a book, Al had his eyes closed and seemed happy with just lying there, but Fran was restless. Scorpius was good for Al; she just _knew_ she was right about that. She was going to help her childhood friend out with this.

"Oh? Then where is he?" She challenged.

Al groaned, a groan of pure irritation, "I'm not the centre of his universe, Fran. He had quidditch practice, and then he mentioned going to Hogsmeade."

"And he didn't ask you to go with him?" Somehow Fran doubted that.

Al opened a single green eye and regarded her for a moment, "I didn't want to go." He closed his eye once more, "It sounded like too much effort."

"I for one agree with him." Damien said, shooting his girlfriend a look of warning as he set his book down and stretched, "Today is the perfect day to be lazy."

Al hummed his approval of Dai's words as he pushed Scorpius out of his mind. He didn't want to think about the Gryffindor and their complicated friendship. Not today.

But of course, Fran didn't take the hint.

"Come on, Al. Why aren't you talking to Scorpius properly? What happened?"

Al frowned, "Whatever happened, and I'm not saying anything did, is between both of us. Stop meddling. I told him I'd give being friends with him a try, and I did. I don't think it's going to work out."

"What?!" Fran's shrill voice attracted a bit of attention, "That's unfair!"

Al gave up on trying to keep up the pretence of sunbathing. He stood and glared down at his best friend, "Why are you pushing this? It doesn't even bloody involve you!"

"Because you're _happy_ when he's around." Fran cried, throwing her arms up in frustration, "I want you to be happy!"

Al's brows rose at her statement, and he couldn't help his bemused smile, "What on earth makes you think I was unhappy before Scorpius deigned to be my friend?"

"You may not have been unhappy, but you weren't happy. There always seems to be something weighing on you, Al. Something that you don't talk about to Dai or me. And in the past few weeks that you've been around Scor, it feels like whatever was bothering you just kind of disappeared." Fran said, aware that several people were now listening in. She ought not to bring up such a sensitive topic in public like this, but she knew if she didn't speak now, Al would never give her the opportunity to bring it up again.

Al let his eyes sweep his surroundings as discreetly as he could manage. He could make out Louis, his cousin, lounging under a nearby tree with his friends. Just from the way Louis seemed to be sitting up straight alerted Al to the fact that he was listening to every word. This was not good. He dusted himself off, levelling a look that spoke of horrible consequences for Fran if she did not let him walk away from this conversation, "It never disappeared, and it's never going to. Your love for dramatic scenes like _this_ is precisely why I don't confide in you." He said in a low, dangerous voice. He turned to head back to the castle and paused when he realised Scorpius was standing a few feet behind him, looking like he'd been hit on the head with a club.

Shaking his head, because he really did not know how what had seemed like a wonderful afternoon a few moments ago could become such a bloody nightmare, he ignored Scorpius and walked back to the castle. What he wanted now was time alone and he knew where to go to get it.

* * *

Scorpius was waiting for him when he finally left the Room of Requirement a few hours later. Al paused, his green eyes giving away his surprise.

"How did you know where I'd gone?" He asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

Scorpius shrugged, his grey eyes focusing on Al's face, "I think I understand what I did to piss you off that evening in your common room." He said evenly, his eyes darting about Al's face as if looking for something.

Al worked to keep his expression unreadable and his tone neutral, "Oh? What do you think you did?"

"I didn't take away the right meaning from your words. I deduced wrongly about what was bothering you." Scorpius said, knowing even as he spoke that he was right. Al might be very good at keeping his emotions off his face, but Scorpius had been reading him for so many years now. He could make out the apprehension in Al's eyes.

"And what was bothering me?" Al asked carefully. He was torn between wanting Scorpius to know and being terrified that Scorpius might know. His secret made him weak and vulnerable and Al hated feeling either of those things.

His relief was tinged with the slightest hint of disappointment when Scorpius said softly, "I don't know, Al." He took a step closer to the Slytherin, reaching out to take his hands, "But I've been talking to you for a little over a month now. How could you expect me to figure out something that even your best friends for six years haven't been able to work out?"

Al frowned, his grip on Scorpius's hands tightening involuntarily, "It's not the same thing. I thought you would understand. You understand me better than most people."

Scorpius couldn't help his light chuckle as he stepped closer so he was mere inches away from Al, their equal heights allowing them to hold one another's gaze. "And you would throw that away?"

Al felt his breath catch in his throat as he looked at Scorpius. It was there again. That warm, soft look in those silvery eyes. They seemed to almost glow with emotion, and it made Al's heart contract and his stomach flip. He blinked, taking a deep breath, what was happening?

Scorpius inhaled the sharp scent of chocolate and vanilla that seemed to cling to Al. Just what in the wizarding world did the Slytherin use to make him smell so...yummy? Scorpius was half tempted to lean in further and lick a line from the side of Al's neck to his ear lobe. Would he taste as good as he smelt?

It was his blood rushing to his groin and his stomach tightening with lust that brought Scorpius back to the present. He took a step back, trying not to tremble as he did. Merlin, what had that been? He had never felt desire that strong before. He looked back to Al and found that the other boy was looking steadily away from him, breathing deeply. Had he realised what had been going through Scorpius's mind? The thought worried the Gryffindor. After all, he had come here to win back his friend, not freak him out.

"Al?"

Green eyes snapped back to his face and Scorpius was nearly bowled over by the depth of emotion in them. He couldn't identify all of them, but he could make out some. Determination, resolve...anxiety?

"I won't throw it away." Al said finally, breaking the silence.

Relief flooded through Scorpius's system, and if he had known he could control his body's reactions, he would have launched himself on Al and held on to him tightly. As it was though, that action seemed too risky. Especially when the mere thought of having Al's warm body pressed against him was making him harder. So he decided to forego the hug and decided on squeezing the hands he somehow still held.

Al squeezed back and gave him a light smile before pulling his hands away. He rubbed the back of his neck now, a sign of nervousness, "You were supposed to be in Hogsmeade."

"It wasn't any fun without you." Scorpius said truthfully, "Besides, I'm glad I came back early."

Al looked at him warily, making him chuckle, "Worried I'm going to say something embarrassingly gooey again?"

"Quite." Al said, biting back his smile.

"Well, you're right. I am." Scorpius confirmed, beginning to walk towards the staircase, knowing his friend would follow.

Al let out a long-suffering sigh, "Okay then, out with it."

"I got to hear you call me Scorpius." He said, grinning widely.

Al rolled his eyes, but his cheeks flushed with colour, "And you called _me_ a nutter."

* * *

Read and review!

~Living to Laugh and Love


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

October was fast approaching an end and with this news of the Halloween Ball made the rounds in Hogwarts. Since Al was still not talking to Fran, making spending time with Damien also quite hard, he spent most of his time in the Gryffindor Common Room with Scorpius and his friends. And this, unfortunately, meant hanging out with James. James, who was too curious about his siblings' lives for his own good.

"Oh come on, Al. Lily told me who was taking _her_ for the ball." James whined, frowning at his younger brother.

"Lily didn't tell you anything. You threatened Hugo till he told you who was taking her." Al said dryly, shoving his brother away from him, "Leave me alone, James. I'm not going to tell you."

James gave up on his brother and tried another tack, looking to Scorpius, "Did he tell you?"

Scorpius laughed, "Even if he had, you know I couldn't tell you, mate."

James narrowed his eyes at Scorpius, looking between him and Al. They were sitting quite close to one another. "Are _you_ taking him to the ball?"

You could have heard a wand drop on the lushly carpeted floor of the common room in the silence that followed. Scorpius cursed James for his tactlessness as he felt Al freeze up beside him. It was only because he had seen his fair share of fights between the Potter brothers that he knew not to reach for Al to stop him from punching James out. Al was way too classy to punch. He always went straight to jinxing.

" _Tarantallegra_!"

" _Pro_ —"

But Al was too quick for him, as usual, and James found himself dancing around the common room against his will.

"Damn it, Al! Call...it...off!" James cried between pants.

"I don't think I will." Al said breezily, getting supreme pleasure from watching his brother try to catch his breath.

The spell finally wore off after two minutes, and James sank to the floor, falling back to lie down as he fought to breathe. "I'm...going...to...kill...you. Bloody...Slytherin!"

Al laughed, and Scorpius joined in, even as he stood to go help James onto his feet.

"Traitor." James muttered, letting Scorpius help him to the couch.

"You should have known better than to say what you did." Scorpius said sagely, returning to his seat by Al. He noticed that Al had moved just an inch or two away from him and inwardly sighed. He had expected that.

"Why? There's nothing wrong with you taking Al to the ball! In fact, it would save me worrying about a total idiot taking him." James said, matter-of-factly.

"Except Al is straight, love." Nicola said, shaking her head at him, "So why would anyone be taking him? He would be the one doing the taking, don't you think?"

Scorpius watched with some interest as the elder Potter brother blinked, processing his girlfriend's words before turning to look to his brother with a befuddled look on his face. Al was looking back at him with the same expression. Understanding and something that felt a lot like hope coursed through Scorpius.

"Are you mad? Even if it were a girl who was Al's date, she would be more butch than he is. Do you know how much time he spends on his hair every morning?" James asked lightly, wiping his face clean of his confusion, catching on to the situation now.

"Oh, sod off." Al said without any real bite to his tone.

James grinned and launched into a story of how Al's hair habits had made them late for a Quidditch World Cup match. As he spoke, Al shifted closer to Scorpius once more, leaning against the other boy and speaking in a very soft voice so only he could hear.

"What are the chances you misunderstood _that_?"

Scorpius edged his hand sideways so it touched Al's, brushing his fingers against the other boy's, "Very slight."

Al frowned thoughtfully, but said nothing.

"Is that alright?" Scorpius asked, turning his head to look at Al.

Al seemed to consider this for a few moments before nodding. "I guess it is. I don't want to tell people though."

"I understand. Your secret is safe with me."

* * *

"I didn't know it was a secret, I swear." James said, holding his hands up in surrender as he met his brother outside the Room of Requirement after dinner, like they had agreed to.

Al's lips twitched but he said nothing as the door appeared on the wall beside them. Al pushed it open, gesturing for James to go in before he did. Once they were both inside the doors closed, and Al knew they would not be disturbed.

"How did you know?" He asked curiously. He'd thought he'd been fairly good at hiding the signs that pointed to his sexuality. And the rest of the student body of Hogwarts seemed none the wiser about him. So what had given him away to James?

James snorted, "Al, seriously? I've known you all my life. It's always been very obvious to me. That's why I assumed everyone knew. I mean, it's like with Scorpius. He didn't have to tell everyone he was gay, we just always knew. When he told us he was dating a bloke from Ravenclaw, no one bat an eyelid." James chuckled, "Besides, I was telling the truth before. No straight guy would worry about his hair as much as you do."

"That's a stereotype." Al said frowning, "Just because it happens to fit me doesn't mean it's true."

James grinned, "I know. I'm just pulling your leg."

Al couldn't help but grin back, "You're okay with it?"

"Of course I'm okay with it! I've been friends with Scor for years, haven't I? It doesn't bother me, Al. It's who you are. You'll always be my annoying little brother. Nothing would change that." James assured him, throwing an arm around his neck and ruffling his hair.

Al didn't even shove him away, he just grinned, feeling more light-hearted than he had in a while. "Thanks."

James waved away his gratitude, "You know everyone in the family is going to react the same way I did. So why is this a secret?"

Al sighed, fiddling with his hair to set it straight, "I'm just not ready for people to know."

James studied his younger brother, "And Scorpius?"

Al met that brown gaze, "He knows."

"You know, you'd make a cute couple."

Al groaned, "To have my brother talk to me about my love life is fairly traumatising. So please stop."

James grinned, "No, I'm serious. He plays quidditch and is an all-round decent bloke. He's not too hard on the eyes either."

Al snorted, "Have you been checking Scorpius out?"

"Only for you, I swear." James said solemnly, laughing as he jumped out of range of Al's hex.

"You are absurd." Al stated, rolling his eyes.

"Well, of course I am. I'm related to you, aren't I?"

Needless to say, he didn't jump out of the way quickly enough that time.

* * *

"Well, Al told me I'd find you here, but I didn't know I'd find you in this state." Scorpius's voice was beyond amused as he approached.

"Shut up and get these things away from me!" James cried, batting away the persistent creatures that refused to leave him alone, scratching his arms as he shielded his face.

" _Evanesco_!" Scorpius pointed his wand at the bogies and they vanished.

James sagged back against the corridor wall, "I'm going to kill him. That's twice in one day!"

"Al is quite gifted at the Bat Bogey Hex, isn't he? I'll have to ask him to teach me sometime." Scorpius mused, studying the scratches on James's arms.

James glowered at him, "When are you going to tell my brother you fancy him, Malfoy?"

Scorpius levelled a wry look at James, "I don't know what you're talking about."

James snorted, "Of course you don't. You are an appalling liar. You know that, Scor?"

"Yes, actually. The Sorting Hat pointed it out as one of the reasons it wasn't putting me in Slytherin." Scorpius said, grinning slightly.

"Huh." James processed this new information, "Al _is_ a ridiculously gifted liar. Unless you know his tells."

"Tells?" Scorpius frowned, unfamiliar with the term.

"There's this muggle card game called 'Poker' and it's essential to have an unreadable face when you play it because otherwise you could give away your intentions and lose the game. It's called having a 'poker face'." James explained looking to see if Scorpius was following. Seeing that he was, he continued, "Well, even the best poker player has tells. Something that gives them away, betrays their emotions."

"Like the fact that Al rubs his hand on the back of his neck when he's nervous?" Scorpius asked, understanding.

"Right. Exactly like that." James grinned, "How many other tells of my brother do you know?"

Sensing that the Potter's mind was in the gutter, Scorpius elbowed him in the stomach, making him double over. But instead of getting annoyed, James just laughed.

"You know, I think I'd prefer it if you didn't tell my brother about your feelings for a while yet."

Scorpius bit back a smile, "And why is that?"

"If you're this violent alone, I shudder to think of what you'd be capable of together." James quipped.

Scorpius laughed.

* * *

Please leave a review! Reviews motivate me to write faster :)

~Living to Laugh and Love


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"So who are you going to the ball with?" Scorpius asked, walking backwards and facing Al as they made their way outside. Today was the first quidditch match of the year, Gryffindor against Hufflepuff, and Scorpius had managed to convince Al to come cheer Gryffindor on. The Halloween Ball was going to be held in the Great Hall that evening, after the match.

Al gave Scorpius a meaningful look, "Given that I don't want to tell people, I can't exactly go with anyone I'd want to go with, can I?"

"You could go with me." Scorpius said, trying his greatest to sound nonchalant.

Al's brows shot up in surprise, "What?"

"As friends, I mean. We could go together as friends. No one would think anything was off about that. They know we're close." Scorpius rushed to clarify.

"Oh." Al studied his friend's ruffled countenance, "I heard that a whole bunch of guys asked you to the ball."

Scorpius winced. He had gone out of his way to ensure no one asked him to the ball when Al was around, because he had not wanted Al to even entertain the idea that Scorpius was interested in somebody else. Of course that had been wasted effort. News spread fast in Hogwarts. "They did. I just didn't want to go with any of them."

"And you want to go with me?" Al asked, raising a single brow. Scorpius felt like those green eyes could see into his very soul.

"Yes." His answer came out sounding almost wistful before he shook himself out of his mood, clearing his throat, "As friends, yes, I want to."

"Alright."

Scorpius couldn't help his grin, "Alright?"

Al chuckled, "Yes, alright. Now shouldn't you catch up to your team?"

Scorpius turned around and saw that the Gryffindor team had indeed disappeared from their line of sight. Cursing, Scorpius called out a rushed goodbye before setting off on a run.

Al chuckled, "Good luck!" He called out.

* * *

Al settled down on the Slytherin stands, feeling a sense of complete oddness. He had never really been on this side of a quidditch match at Hogwarts. He found that he was actually looking forward to it.

"Al?"

Turning around, he saw a pale-faced Fran standing next to Damien, who flashed Al a smile. He returned the smile and looked back to Fran, waiting for her to speak.

Seeming grateful that he was finally giving her the chance, Fran opened her mouth, ready with a much-practiced spiel of how she was an insensitive troll who was sorry and would do anything for his forgiveness. No words came though. Instead, tears prickled Fran's eyes as she stared at her best friend who had so viciously cut her out of his life for the past two weeks. Not that she hadn't deserved it.

All the emotions welled up in her and she flung herself at Al, who barely managed to catch her, as stunned as he was by her actions.

"I'm sorry!" She wailed, "Please talk to me! I miss you, Al!"

Al's eyes widened as he looked to Damien helplessly. Dai looked just as shocked as he was and just shrugged, a small smile curving his lips.

"Um, Fran? Francesca?" Al ventured.

His hesitant tone only made her cries louder, and now their whole house was watching them. "You never call me 'Francesca'! Don't hate me, Al!"

"Merlin! Woman, would you calm the fuck down?" Al took Fran by her shoulders and shook her slightly so her blue eyes focused on his face. The wailing stopped and she just sniffled as she looked up at him.

"I did a horrible thing. I shouldn't have said what I did where I did. And I shouldn't have meddled. I'm sorry." She said in a soft voice, trembling as she spoke.

Al sighed, pulling her forward and wrapping his arms around her, "Only you could make a scene of apologising for making a scene. What am I going to do with you?" He muttered affectionately, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"Keep me." Fran said, sniffling as she pulled away, "And don't you dare pull a stunt like this again. I nearly died. Ask Damien."

Al looked to Dai who just rolled his eyes, and he laughed, "You are such a drama queen, Fran."

"Not to interrupt this very sweet moment, but the match is starting. Scorpius will kill you Fran if you keep Al from watching it." Damien said with a grin, stepping closer to his friends as the onlookers slowly turned their attention back to the game.

"Please. I could take on a Gryffindor." Fran scoffed, but she let Al go and turned to the game. All the players had flown to take their positions and from his seat Al could make out Scorpius's ponytail whipping behind him in the wind.

The quaffle was thrown up, the bludgers let loose, and the snitch released. The game officially began. Al found that watching a game of quidditch was infinitely more satisfying than playing. Since he had been Seeker, he had had to spend the entire game scouring the grounds for the snitch. As a result, he'd missed out on a lot of the action.

He'd even missed out on noticing how incredibly sexy Scorpius looked on a broom, he mused, watching the Gryffindor rocket to the hoop on his far left, stopping the quaffle from sailing through it with a barrel roll. He threw the quaffle to Lily who readily caught it and set off for the Hufflepuff goals. She passed it to James just before she reached the Keeper and he scored yet another goal. Gryffindor was ahead by ninety points.

An excited murmur suddenly overtook the audience and Al could see from his vantage point that the seekers had spotted the snitch. He tried to see it himself and managed to make out a glint of gold streaking downwards. Louis, who was Seeker for Gryffindor, made a corkscrew dive that threw off his opponent. He pulled up sharply from the dive with his hand in the air. He'd caught the snitch. The stands erupted with cheers.

Al, Fran and Dai made their way down to the grounds, chattering excitedly. It was when they were at the bottom, walking out into the grass towards James, Lily and Scorpius, that someone called out Al's name. Waving his friends on, Al turned and smiled quizzically at the fifth year Slytherin girl who had called him. He had definitely seen her before but when he tried to pick his mind for her name, he came up blank.

"Did you need something?" He settled for asking, giving her a slight smile.

"W-Well, I was just wondering, I mean I know it's fairly late, but maybe you could, maybe _we_ could go to the ball together tonight?"

Al blinked, not having expected that at all. He knew he was attractive, and he was used to getting his fair share of appreciative looks from girls, but this had to be the first time one of them had plucked up the courage to actually ask him out. He had not dated and had cultivated an aura of 'untouchable' around him to precisely avoid situations like the one he was now in. Though, he reasoned in his head, it had only been a matter of time before some girl finally took the plunge and asked him out. It figured that she would be a Slytherin. He wouldn't have felt half as bad to turn down a Hufflepuff.

"Sorry." He said, trying his best to look apologetic, "I'm not really looking for a date. I promised a friend I'd go with him. He's had a hard time with dating recently."

The girl turned red, looking supremely embarrassed, "Oh. Right. Of course. I'm sorry for asking."

Al couldn't help his chuckle, "Don't be. I'm flattered." Then, giving the girl a wink, he turned and almost ran right into Scorpius.

"Oh! Hey!" He said, his grin widening at the sight of his friend. He completely missed the mutinous expression Scorpius had been wearing when he turned, and Scorpius quickly forced a smile on his face. The smile became genuine as he noted the actual joy on Al's face at seeing him. "Did you enjoy the game?"

"It was brilliant!" Al exclaimed in a rare show of excitement, "I didn't realise you were such a good Keeper."

"So you don't hate quidditch?" Scorpius asked hopefully.

Al chuckled, knocking Scorpius's shoulder with his own as they walked towards the rest of the team, "No, I reckon I don't."

Scorpius was silent for a moment and then ventured, "Had a hard time with dating, have I?"

Al chuckled sheepishly, "Well, what else was I going to say?"

"Al! Did you see me score those goals?!" Lily danced up to them and flung her arms around her brother. Al laughed, hugging her back and responding to her question, not noticing Scorpius's rigid body beside his.

Scorpius watched his friend laugh with his sister and elder brother who had joined them, and felt his stomach sink. When he had heard the Slytherin girl ask Al out, he had wanted to turn Al around and kiss him, to let her know just how off-limits he was. Then he had heard Al's excuse for turning the girl down and felt an ache in his chest. Al might be gay, but he wasn't ready to have people know that fact about him yet. And how could Scorpius get Al to date him when he didn't want anyone to know he liked guys?

The truth was blaringly obvious now, and Scorpius couldn't quite deny it anymore. He, Scorpius Malfoy, fancied the pants out of Albus Potter. Merlin help him.

* * *

Read and review! :)

~Living to Laugh and Love


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"What exactly are you supposed to be?" Scorpius asked, frowning as he studied his friend.

"What! Scor, I'm a vampire! _Obviously_!" Al exclaimed, scowling in protest.

Scorpius felt a thrill at hearing his nickname leave Al's lips, but he didn't react to it, only snorted and said, "You look like no vampire I've ever seen."

Al straightened, green eyes glinting with intrigue, "Wait, you've seen vampires?"

"Father does business with them once in a while." Scorpius said, shrugging.

Al sighed, "Your dad is sounding more and more like the coolest person ever."

Scorpius chuckled, "Al? Explain the costume."

"It's a muggle interpretation." Damien supplied, coming out of the bathroom dressed in his own costume.

Scorpius noted the copious amounts of grey cloth that fell off Dai and grinned, "Let me guess. Dementor?"

Dai grinned, and Al chuckled, "Fran is going to kill you, Dai."

"She's going to be furious. But she won't kill me." Damien's eyes took on a wicked gleam, "Not if I redirect her anger to a more productive activity."

Al grimaced, "Oh, gross. What did I tell you about talking about your sex lives?"

"Al, just because you will never appreciate the beauty of the opposite sex doesn't mean I can't." Dai said, shrugging.

Scorpius froze, "Wait." He looked between Damien and Al before turning back to his friend, "They know?"

Dai snorted, "Of course we know. I think Fran was the one who clued Al in to the fact that he was gay."

Al glowered at his friend, "I could have figured it out."

"You could have. If she'd given you time. But as always, Fran had the patience of a goblin."

Scorpius frowned, "But then, that means everyone who's important already knows. Except for your family."

Al snorted, "My family consists of roughly thirty five people, Scorpius."

"But you know they'd take it well." Scorpius pointed out.

"Where are you going with this?" Al asked, folding his arms at his chest, narrowing his eyes at the Gryffindor.

Dai looked between the two of them and cleared his throat, "Well, I suppose I will see you both in the Great Hall."

Both boys ignored his departure, their attention focused on each other.

"Why don't you want to tell people?"

"Why are you pushing this?"

"Because I want to know!" Scorpius cried, throwing his arms up in frustration.

"You always want to know." Al muttered, running a hand through his hair, making a face when he felt the gel he had used generously to slick his hair back. "I'm not ready, Scor. Can't you respect that?"

Scorpius sighed, "I can. Of course I can. It's just..."

"What?" Al asked, taking a step closer to his friend.

Scorpius's eyes met and held Al's gaze, "What if you meet someone?"

Al had answered that question when Fran had asked him years ago, so the response came easily, "They'd have to convince me that they're worth it."

"Convince you?" Scorpius asked, taken aback. He hadn't expected that kind of an answer. Though really, knowing Al as well as he now did, he ought to have.

"Convince me." Al confirmed, smiling slightly, "You ready to go?"

Scorpius nodded, processing the new information for a moment before he said, "You know, you never asked me what I was." He was dressed in an emerald green leather and cloth ensemble that covered his arms and legs fully, fitting his body like a glove. Large royal purple wings sprouted from the back of the costume and fluttered every so often, making the air sparkle with glitter. He also, for once, wore his hair loose, letting it fall in a sheet of gold to his wait, a gold circlet fixed above his brow to signify the importance of the character he had taken on that evening.

"You weren't all that hard to figure out, 'Oberon'. The wings were a dead giveaway." Al said, smirking as he added, "Those are extremely girly wings by the way."

Scorpius launched into a protest and Al just smiled as he walked with him to the Great Hall, keeping it to himself that he thought Scorpius looked absolutely stunning.

* * *

"You should dance." Al told Scorpius for the hundredth time as he sent away yet another person, "You like to dance."

Scorpius raised a single brow, "And how would you know that?"

Al rolled his eyes, "I may not have liked you before, but I did pay attention you know."

Scorpius grinned, "You paid attention to me?"

Al snorted, marvelling at the look of glee on the Gryffindor's face, "You really have no filter, do you?"

"I have one." Scorpius assured him, "I'm just less selective about what I choose to filter. When did you watch me dance?"

"James's birthday last year. You brought a date, and I don't think you ever sat down." Al mused.

Scorpius remembered that party. Jacob, his date, had dumped him right after it, accusing Scorpius of not paying him any attention. Not that Scorpius blamed him, really. Al had looked particularly yummy that night in a black shirt and dark green jeans that had fit him like a dream. Al had been less guarded than usual too, owing to the fact that his parents had been present and his cousins had congregated around him for most of the night, leaving James with his friends. Scorpius had had a hard time looking away from him.

"Scor?"

Scorpius looked at the bemused smile on his friend's face and flushed, realising he had tuned Al out. "Yeah?"

"Alistair was trying to ask you for a dance." Al said, his smile widening as he realised just how out of it his friend was.

"Oh." Scorpius only then noticed the slightly shorter, younger wizard standing with them, "Oh! Sorry, Alistair."

Alistair chuckled, waving away his apology, "You're looking spectacular tonight, and I wanted a dance. So how about it?"

Scorpius smiled at the compliment but glanced at his friend, his smile wavering. Al rolled his eyes though and just pushed Scorpius lightly from behind. "Just go. I'll be right here when you get back."

"You're sure you don't want to dance?" Scorpius pouted, not having done so since he was five.

Al felt a reckless need to lean forward and suck on that pronounced bottom lip, but he pushed it back, "I'm sure. Have fun."

One dance became two, and then more wizards and witches approached him and he couldn't turn them away. Didn't want to. Scorpius fancied Al, definitely, but he loved dancing, and he rarely got the opportunity to do it.

It was only when the gong sounded, marking the end of another hour, that Scorpius realised just how long he'd been away from Al. Making his excuses, he left the dance floor and made his way to the corner of the room that he and Al had claimed when they'd come in. He grinned when he saw that Al was still there, but the grin quickly fell away when he saw the girl sitting next to Al, obviously flirting. It was the same girl who had asked Al to the ball earlier that day.

"Al?" Scorpius tried to keep his voice light, his gaze flickering to the Slytherin girl's annoyed face.

"I saw that you had fun." Al said, grinning as he turned to him.

"I did." Scorpius agreed, sitting down beside his friend so his side touched Al's. Al didn't move away, he allowed the contact, and Scorpius couldn't help but feel bolder. He rested his head on Al's shoulder and turned his face so his nose was pressed against Al's neck. He felt his friend stiffen beside him, "Scor? You alright?"

"Just tired." He mumbled, a sudden wave of drowsiness hitting him as he forgot about the audience and cuddled closer to Al, "You smell good."

Al contemplated pushing Scorpius away, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Scorpius felt good against him, and the way his nose was pressed against Al's neck gave Al the most brilliant shivers all through his body. Besides, Scorpius was Al's best mate and he was clearly knackered. The least Al could do was help him to his dorms.

So, he slipped an arm around Scorpius's waist and stood, steadying him when he stumbled. Al turned to the girl who had been talking to him and frowned when he found no one there. Shrugging, he put his friend's arm around his shoulders and started walking them out of the Great Hall. They made it to the tower and Scorpius mumbled the password for the Fat Lady, who had taken to eyeing them distrustfully whenever they showed up together.

Al helped Scorpius to his dorms, which were still empty, and steered the Gryffindor to his bed.

"You were dancing till a few minutes ago. Where did all that energy go?" Al wondered, as he pulled the covers over his friend's body. Al had vanished his wings before putting him on the bed.

"Went far away." Scorpius mumbled, his hands still latched onto Al's white shirt.

"Scor, you need to let go so I can get back to my dorms." Al said patiently, trying to pry his friend's hands loose.

Scorpius frowned, blinking up at him sleepily, "Stay with me."

"What?" Al's tone was sharp as he looked at his friend.

Scorpius pushed away his fatigue and looked up at Al with those lovely silver eyes, "That girl is in Slytherin. I don't want you to go there. Stay with me." He tugged Al closer, "Please."

Al felt his heart skip a beat and his breath catch as he managed a helpless laugh, "And you said you had a filter."

"Too tired to be bothered to use it." Scorpius admitted, "Will you stay?"

"Where am I going to sleep?" Al asked, looking around at the other beds which all belonged to boys who would be coming up later in the night.

Scorpius shifted to the side on his bed, leaving just enough room for Al; even then it would be a tight fit. They would be pressed up against one another the whole night. And Al was starting to find that he didn't really care.

Biting his lower lip in a moment of indecision, Al finally gave in, moving to lie down beside Scorpius. As soon as he was on the bed, Scorpius spelled the curtains shut and uttered a privacy spell so no one could disturb them.

Al lay on his back, looking up at Scorpius who was lying on his side.

In the darkness of the curtained bed, Al couldn't make out the emotions in the Gryffindor's eyes. He could feel something pressing against his thigh though, and Al couldn't help his smirk.

He shifted slightly so the side of his thigh pressed harder against Scorpius's erection, making the other boy groan as he let his head fall forward to rest in the crook of Al's neck. "Is that because of me?"

Scorpius chuckled humourlessly, "What do you think?"

"I think," Al said carefully, "you were dancing with a lot of attractive guys at fairly close range. I might not necessarily be the cause."

"Were they different guys?" Scorpius asked, his voice husky as he lifted his head to meet Al's gaze, "I saw only one." Scorpius leaned forward, and at this angle, Al could make out the look in his eyes. It was that soft, warm, glowing look that Scorpius seemed to get only around him, and it reinforced just how serious the Gryffindor was about what they were talking about. About what was about to happen.

"I saw only you." Scorpius whispered.

When Scorpius's lips finally touched his, Al arched up into the kiss. Having never kissed before, he let Scorpius take the lead, allowing him to place soft wet kisses over his lips before his bottom lip was sucked on in a move that had him hardening in his pants. A breathy moan left him and Scorpius took that opportunity to touch his tongue to just inside the seam of Al's lips. Al whimpered as Scorpius traced the line of his open mouth from the inside before finally allowing his tongue to touch Al's. Heart practically beating out of his chest, Al let his fingers slowly touch first Scorpius's chest, then his neck, before diving into his hair. He mimicked Scorpius's action, sucking his lower lip into his mouth, making the other boy moan as he shifted so he was straddling Al. He deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue against Al's, and sank his own hands into Al's soft hair...only to break away with a grimace.

"Oh, gross." He said, looking down at the hair gel that now coated his hands.

Al couldn't suppress a chuckle, and when he met Scorpius's gaze, the other boy chuckled as well until suddenly both boys were shaking with silent laughter.

"I should go shower." Al said, turning his head so his nose was in Scorpius's hair, inhaling the rich, enticing scent he now identified with Scorpius.

"Me too." Scorpius murmured, pressing a kiss to the side of Al's jaw, looking down at him with an incredibly soft look on his face.

"You're being a sap in your head, aren't you?" Al asked dryly.

"I'm just glad I can do this now." Scorpius said, leaning down to kiss Al lazily. Al hummed his approval underneath him, his hand slipping around the back of Scorpius's neck to keep him there longer.

When they broke for air, Al fell back on the bed with a supremely satisfied grin on his face, "Feel free to do that whenever you want."

Scorpius started at that, "Whenever?" He asked, hopefully

Al gave him a small smile, sitting up and framing Scorpius's face in his hands, "Whenever." He confirmed, kissing him again lightly. "You did a good job convincing me."

Scorpius's smile could have lit up the Great Hall in that moment. "How do you want to tell everyone?"

"Everyone already knows."

Both boys froze at the sound of Lorcan's amused voice, muffled as it was because of the curtains.

Scorpius turned red with embarrassment and Al let out a sound that was somewhere between a groan and a laugh.

"You remembered to cast a privacy spell but forgot the silencing charm?"

* * *

And it finally happened :) Please leave a review!

~Living to Laugh and Love


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

It turned out that Lorcan had walked into the dorms with Lily while they were being particularly vocal. Lily had, of course, gone red in the face with excitement before darting down to call her brother and Nicola up to the room. Thankfully James had missed the worst of it, but he had heard enough for Scorpius to know his life was going to be miserable for the next few weeks. Al didn't seem too worried about that though. Those scratches were still there on James's arms.

"Wait." Al frowned, turning to Lorcan, "What do you mean you came up here with Lily?"

Horror and realisation registered on both brothers' faces and neither Nicola nor Scorpius were quick enough to stop them from launching themselves at Lorcan, shoving the boy up against the wall as both of them glared menacingly at him.

"Al! James! Let him go!"

"She's only fourteen!" Al growled at Lorcan, stepping away and taking out his wand as James held the boy still.

"What the fuck were you thinking bringing her up here?" James added, eyes narrowed.

Lorcan gulped, looking to Scorpius pleadingly before looking back at Al's wand fearfully, "We were only coming up here to talk, I swear."

"Stop being such barbarians!" Lily cried, stomping her feet in a tantrum.

"Do you see that?" Al asked, pointing at his sister's feet with one hand, keeping his wand trained on Lorcan, "She's throwing a tantrum. She still throws fucking tantrums and you want to shag her?"

Realising that it was time he stepped in, Scorpius placed a hand on Al's shoulder, "Al."

"Don't come near me, Scor, or I'll hex you too. Don't think for a minute I won't."

Scorpius dropped his hand and stepped back, shrugging helplessly at his friend.

"Okay! Okay! I won't do it again!" Lorcan said, putting his hands up in surrender.

"Are you going to dump her just because the two of us shook you up?" James asked him with a sneer.

"N-No, of course not. I'm not going to dump her, okay? And I won't bring her up here again. I swear!" Lorcan promised, eyes never leaving Al's wand.

Both brothers exchanged glances and James nodded, letting Lorcan go. The boy sagged against the wall and the other three in the room were about to sigh in relief when Al flicked his wand. " _Colovaria_." He said coolly.

They watched in fascinated horror, as Lorcan's brown hair became a partly shocking pink and partly lime green.

"Albus Severus Potter, you change his hair back right this instant!" Lily thundered, doing an excellent impression of their mother.

"It'll only last a week." Al said with a shrug, waiting till Lorcan met his gaze to say, "It should serve as a good enough reminder of this evening. Right, Lor?"

Lorcan shook his head in disbelief, looking away from Al to Lily, "I told you. We ought to have gone to the Room of Requirement."

Scorpius and Nicola groaned as Lily paled in horror. Al and James both pointed their wands at Lorcan.

" _Petrificus Totalus_!" The strength of the double spell sent Lorcan flying back to hit the wall before he fell to the floor.

Scorpius sighed, moving to tug Al's wand arm down to keep him from doing any more damage. "That would have definitely hurt. Nicola, maybe you ought to take Lorcan to the Hospital Wing."

Nicola nodded glumly, muttering under her breath about idiot boys who didn't know to quit when they were ahead as she did a silent _levicorpus_ , guiding Lorcan's body out the door.

"Lils, James, go get showered and changed. Meet Al and me in the common room. We're all going down to the kitchens, understood?" Scorpius asked in a no-nonsense voice.

All the Potter siblings nodded glumly before going their respective ways.

Scorpius rolled his eyes, "Just what did I get myself into?" He wondered, following Al into the bathroom.

* * *

Al was sitting on his bed, waiting, when Scorpius came out of the bathroom. He had obviously helped himself to a pair of pajamas and a loose tee from Scorpius's trunk. He looked up as Scorpius walked toward him, his shoulders hunched defensively.

"He deserved it."

Scorpius rolled his eyes, "I suppose he did, from your point of view."

Green eyes widened, "You aren't angry?"

Scorpius sighed, sitting down beside him, "Not as much as I ought to be."

"Oh." Al's lips curved in a grin, "Which part are you angry about?"

Scorpius entwined his fingers with Al's, "Would I be a very horrible friend if I said I'm only angry with you for threatening to hex me?"

Al chuckled, turning to frame Scorpius's face in his hands, "Depends on whose perspective you're looking at it from. From mine, it doesn't make you a horrible friend at all."

Scorpius pushed Al's hands away, raising a single brow sceptically, "I don't think you can still be classified as a friend, Al."

The smile faded and confusion entered the Slytherin's expression, "Why not?"

"Because," Scorpius let his lips curve into a slow smile, "if I were referring to you, I'd be more likely to call you my boyfriend."

Al's green eyes shone with emotion as Scorpius's words registered, and he leaned forward to press his lips to the Gryffindor's. First gently in chaste kisses, then with more urgency as mouths opened and tongues explored, until Scorpius was pressed back on his mattress and Al was hovering over him. Both of them looked at each other for a long moment before Al pressed another kiss to Scorpius's lips and said, "I'm sorry I threatened to hex you."

Scorpius grinned, "You're forgiven." He sat up, pushing Al back as he did, "And as much as I'd love to keep you in my bed, we are supposed to meet your brother and sister downstairs. So move."

Al groaned, "No. Let's not. Lily is going to lecture us. And then she's going to write to Mum tomorrow morning, and Mum will send James and I a howler the day after. We really don't need to talk to each other." Al leaned forward, nuzzling Scorpius's cheek, pressing a light kiss there, "Let's stay here."

Scorpius turned his head, catching Al's lips in a sweet kiss that had him thinking he had won, before pulling away and standing, "Nice try. Come on."

Pouting adorably, Al followed Scorpius out of the dorms and down to the common room. James and Lily were already there, recounting the night's adventures to Frank and Rose. All four of them greeted the boys, Lily more reluctantly than the rest.

"Sounds like we missed quite a lot of excitement." Rose said, looking meaningfully between Al and Scorpius, making the boys chuckle.

"Yes, I suppose you did." Scorpius agreed before turning to Lily and James, "Ready to head out?"

James frowned, "Do we have to?"

Al nodded, "We do. He isn't going to change his mind. I tried."

James pondered that, "Maybe you aren't sexy enough Al."

Al glowered at his elder brother but, surprisingly, he did nothing.

James blinked, "No curse? Really? Are you feeling all right, Al? Do we need to take you to see Madam Juniper in the Hospital Wing?"

"You are a veritable glutton for punishment." Scorpius said incredulously, shaking his head at James, "If he had his wand, he'd have jinxed you ten times by now."

James's mouth dropped open, "You took away his wand?!"

"On the way down here." Scorpius confirmed as held out his hand, "And I'm taking yours too."

"No!" James cried, hugging his wand to himself.

"James Sirius Potter, you are going to listen to Scorpius or I will write to your mum with Lily." Nicola said sternly, walking into the common room.

Scorpius smiled at her, "How's Lorcan?"

"Madam Juniper managed to revive him, but she couldn't get his hair to change back to its original colour. When she asked him who had attacked him, he said he couldn't remember."

"So he isn't that dumb after all." Al murmured, earning an elbow in the stomach, "Ow! Scor!"

"Yes, Lorcan behaved like an idiot tonight but he's still my friend. Don't be an ass." Scorpius scolded, narrowing his eyes at his boyfriend.

Al sighed, "Oh alright. Can we get this stupid thing over with?"

"Where are you lot going?" Rose asked curiously.

"Kitchen. To chat, clear the air and have hot chocolate." Scorpius supplied, "Are you interested in joining us?"

"Hot chocolate sounds divine." Frank said, grinning.

"I'm coming too." Rose chimed in.

The large group filed out of the common room, chattering and laughing amongst themselves. Al and Scorpius brought up the rear; their hands linked as they walked down the hallways of the school.

* * *

I see that I have new followers and favourites :) Yay!

Read and review as always.

~Living to Laugh and Love


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the story line. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Two days later when the mail came in, James and Al exchanged long-suffering looks over their respective tables. They had long since learnt not to try and run with the howler. Instead, they waited until it burst, usually at the same time, amplifying their mother's voice tenfold.

"You look like you're at your trial in Azkaban." Scorpius joked, sliding into his now regular seat at the Slytherin table beside Al.

Al just frowned, poking at his omelette, his eyes on the owls swooping low over his table. As he had expected, his jet-black owl, Shade, was among them and landed beside him. Surprisingly though, his envelope was white where James's was still red.

A look of complete indignation crossed James's face before the howler burst open.

 _"_ _JAMES SIRIUS AND ALBUS SEVERUS! IMAGINE MY DISMAY WHEN I GET A LETTER FROM LILY SAYING YOU HAD, YET AGAIN, THREATENED A BOYFRIEND OF HERS AT WAND-POINT! AND THIS TIME YOU ACTUALLY WENT SO FAR AS TO HEX HIM!_

 _I for one think you're doing brilliant work, boys._

 _Shut up, Harry! Stop encouraging them!_

 _IF I HEAR ABOUT THIS KIND OF THING AGAIN, I WILL PERSONALLY COME UP TO THE SCHOOL AND HEX YOU MYSELF, SEEING THAT IT SEEMS TO BE YOUR PREFERRED METHOD OF ATTACK. ALBUS, DON'T THINK I DON'T KNOW IT WAS YOUR WAND THAT DID THE DAMAGE. YOUR FATHER AND I ARE VERY DISAPPOINTED IN YOU!_

 _Gin, I'm actually completely fine with it._

A sigh was uttered. _Boys, I'm going to go kill your father now. HEED MY WARNING AND BEHAVE YOURSELVES! And Scorpius honey, we got Al's letter. We didn't think you'd want our response to be broadcasted in the Great Hall, but I thought you should know we are very happy for you both."_

With that, the letter burst into flames.

The silence in the Great Hall was resounding for a few moments and then suddenly it was filled with laughter and excited chatter. Several of the students looked towards Al and Scorpius, who were both red in the face, marvelling that it had taken them quite so long to catch on. Albus had never dated anyone, and he and Scorpius _were_ awfully close. How had they not seen this before?!

Al slumped in his seat, his grip on his own letter so tight that it was crumpling the paper. "That was so bloody embarrassing." He whined, covering his face, "I'm sorry, Scor."

Scorpius let out a short laugh of disbelief, "No, it's alright. That was a fairly unforgettable way of coming out as a couple in Hogwarts." He recalled something Ginny had said and looked to Al, "You sent them a letter telling them about us?"

"Well, yeah. I kind of had to, didn't I? I told you I was okay with people knowing, and I couldn't have my parents find out from someone else." Al pointed out, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck.

Scorpius couldn't help his smile, leaning forward to press a kiss on the corner of Al's mouth, "You're adorable." He murmured against Al's skin.

Al's cheeks flushed, "I am most certainly _not_." He protested.

"Hm." Scorpius kissed him again before pulling away, "You are. But it's okay, I won't tell anyone. I wouldn't want anyone else to know anyway."

"You two are sickeningly sweet." Fran cooed happily. She had squealed for fifteen minutes straight when Al had told her he was in a relationship with Scorpius. "Scor, have you told your parents?"

Scorpius blinked, "Oh, bollocks. No, I didn't think about it. I don't generally tell them every time I get a new boyfriend." Even as the words left his lips, before he felt Al stiffen up beside him, he had known he'd said the wrong thing.

"Right." Al's expression was stony now as he smoothened out his letter and pushed away his plate of food. "I'm going to head to the common room and read this letter."

Scorpius felt his stomach sink but tried to salvage the situation, "You know what? I'm not all that hungry either. I'll come with you."

Al shook his head, not looking at Scorpius as he muttered, "No, don't. I really just want to be alone."

Scorpius watched Al leave and covered his face with his hands, "Bloody hell. I _completely_ stuffed that up!"

"That you did." Fran agreed with a sigh, "He isn't going to want to see you for the next few days."

"Next few _days_?" Scorpius felt a hint of desperation, "But I didn't mean it the way it sounded!"

"And Al knows that, subconsciously." Damien said with a small, sad smile, "That's why it'll only be a few _days_ and not a few _weeks_."

Fran huffed her agreement; "No one can make you repent your actions quite like Al can."

Scorpius groaned, banging his forehead on the table repeatedly. He had just gotten Al. He didn't think he could do without him for a few days. He'd already made up his mind that the only time he would make do without Al was during the holidays!

He _had_ to find a way to apologise.

With that determined thought, Scorpius got up, rubbing at his forehead (banging his head on the table had been stupid in retrospect) and started on his way to the Slytherin Common Room.

* * *

 _Dear Al,_

 _Your father and I read your letter yesterday, and sweetheart, we're so happy for you. I'll admit I had suspected that you might be gay, but I was not sure until I received your letter. I'm so proud of you for being who you are and making no excuses for it. Your father wanted me to tell you that we would let your grandparents and the rest of the family know. That way, when you ask Scorpius home for Christmas, there won't be any confusion as to what you both mean to one another._

 _And that brings me to my second point, Al. I can honestly not think of anyone better suited for you than Scorpius, though I'll admit it came as a bit of a surprise to me. Especially given that you barely exchanged a few words whenever he came to stay with us in Godric's Hollow. He's kind, thoughtful and just so charming, not to mention gorgeous. I keep telling your father that had Draco Malfoy been quite as good-looking when we were in school, he might have had some competition._

 _What your mother is trying to say Al, in the most roundabout way possible, is that we love you and we accept you and your choice of partner. Scorpius is welcome home at any time. Please give him our love as well._

 _Your mother wants me to remind you to stay out of trouble, but that would just be a waste of breath. I'm not one for wasting breaths._

 _Enjoy the rest of the term, and we'll see you in a month or so._

 _Lots of love,_

 _Mum and Dad_

Scorpius set the letter down on the bedside table where it had been placed and looked to the bed that had its emerald green curtains tightly shut around it. He had really _really_ stuffed this up.

"Al?"

Silence met his hesitant call and Scorpius sighed, sitting down on the floor with his back against the bedside table, "Al, I'm sorry. I know it sounded bad, but I didn't mean it. You aren't just another boyfriend. I shouldn't have said what I did. It just slipped out."

More silence.

"Al, please, you know how much you mean to me. I'm constantly telling you and you're constantly accusing me of being too gooey." Scorpius said desperately.

"For all I know that's how you were with _all_ your boyfriends."

Feeling ecstatic at finally getting a response, Scorpius moved to sit on his knees, facing the curtained bed, "I wasn't. I swear. Half my boyfriends dumped me because whenever you were in the same room as me I couldn't keep my eyes off you. I've been fascinated by you since before I even knew I was gay." Scorpius admitted, red-faced. These were not things he had ever planned on telling Al. Not yet, anyway. But desperate times called for desperate measures.

Curtains opened and Al was looking down at him, eyes narrowed, "If you're lying just to—mmph!" Al's words were cut off by Scorpius's lips as he pressed hard kisses to Al's lips, jaw and neck, whimpering in pure relief and bone-deep need.

"I'm pants at lying." Scorpius said, straddling Al so he was sitting on his lap. He wrapped his arms around Al's neck and pulled him in for another kiss, "I want you. Only you. No one else mattered the way you do. I promise. Don't leave me."

Al studied him solemnly and seeing the panic in those silver eyes, he sighed, pulling Scorpius onto the bed with him before shutting the curtains and uttering privacy and silencing spells. He allowed Scorpius to mould his body to his, leaving little space between them. Al wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's waist, running one hand through his pale golden hair, "I was never going to _leave_ you. Punish you, maybe, but not leave. I just came out to the whole bloody school for you. Did you really think I'd let you walk away from me so easily?"

"Your friends scared me." Scorpius admitted, nuzzling Al's neck, "They said you'd stay away for _days_."

"I might have if _they_ had pissed me off. With you, all I was willing to manage was to keep out of your way till dinner. I figured that would have been enough of a punishment." Al said, chuckling.

"It would have." Scorpius agreed, sighing contentedly as he snuggled further into Al's body, "I read your parents' letter. I'm glad they're okay with this."

Al seemed to hesitate for a moment, and before he spoke Scorpius said gently, "I sent Mother a letter before coming here. She'll tell Father."

"Oh." Al frowned, "He will still be alright with showing me his new potions right?"

Scorpius snorted, "I'm sure he will."

Al's eyes lit up with excitement, "You think he would introduce me to his vampire clients if I asked?"

"We'll see." Scorpius promised, pressing a light kiss to Al's neck, "Be fairly warned, I'm going to be incredibly needy and clingy for the next few days."

Al grinned, kissing Scorpius's temple, "I'll keep it in mind."

* * *

Two chapters in one day :)

Please do leave me a review! I love reading them.

~Living to Laugh and Love


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I only own the storyline and the original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

"Hogsmeade?" Al asked, surprised.

Fran rolled her eyes, "Don't tell me you haven't even _considered_ it, Al." She said disappointedly.

Al scowled, "Why would I have? Scorpius doesn't seem to mind hanging out at school."

"That's just the thing!" Fran cried, throwing her arms up in frustration, "Hanging out at school is just that, hanging out. Going to Hogsmeade is a _date_."

"A date." Al said, as if the words were foreign to him. Which, quite honestly, they were. He had never been on a _date_ before! "You're sure Scorpius would want to go?"

Fran rolled her eyes as Damien chuckled, "Al, the boy is gone on you. I'm fairly certain he'd do just about whatever you asked him to."

Someone snorted behind them, "Though I don't know _what_ he sees in you."

Al stiffened, turning to glare at the Hufflepuff boy who had been sitting behind him in Charms for years. In the past few weeks, he had taken to making snide remarks and snarky comments about Al or his relationship with Scorpius.

Keeping his mother's warning in mind, Al had been ignoring him, but he was now well and truly fed up.

"I've been meaning to ask, what _is_ your problem, Smith?"

"I thought it was fairly obvious." Smith said, sneering, "My problem is _you_. Last year all Scorpius wanted was me, and now suddenly he's all about you!" Everyone nearby was now listening in on the conversation, "I suppose it's okay though. It'll only be a matter of time before he moves on from you as well."

Al smirked, "Oh, he isn't ever going to leave me."

Smith raised a single brow, curiosity and worry battling in his brown eyes, "You seem confident of that."

"I am." Al said coolly.

"Why?"

"Because I know how to keep a guy interested." Al's green eyes gleamed wickedly, "You obviously don't."

Enraged and embarrassed, Smith stood up and pointed his wand at Al, " _Confundo!_ "

" _Furnunculus!_ " Al cried as he ducked, having expected the attack. Smith had fallen right into his trap. After all, he couldn't be punished if he was just defending himself, could he?

"Mr Potter! Mr Smith! What is the meaning of this?!" Professor Flitwick sputtered, waddling up to them.

"Al was only defending himself, sir!" Fran said immediately, "Smith fired the first shot." She looked to the people nearest to them and gave them a narrowed glare, " _Right_?"

There was a chorus of yeses that met her question, and Flitwick was inwardly bemused by how readily everyone gave their support. He studied the boils that now covered the Hufflepuff's face and frowned, "Who will take Mr Smith to see Madam Juniper?"

A fellow Hufflepuff raised his hand and Flitwick nodded, waving them away. He then turned to Al, a single brow raised in question, "Mr Potter, can I trust that you will not use your wand on a fellow student again?"

"Not unless I am provoked sir." Al promised easily.

Flitwick chuckled, shaking his head, "Somehow I doubt it takes all that much to provoke you."

Just like that, Charms class resumed.

* * *

"Are you alright?" Scorpius pulled his boyfriend to stand by an open window, using the light to thoroughly check him for bruises.

Al rolled his eyes, "I'm fine."

Scorpius frowned at the Slytherin's bored tone of voice, "He tried to curse you!"

"Only because I wanted him to." Al said with a shrug. He sighed when he saw the worry in those grey eyes. He smiled reassuringly and took one of the Gryffindor's hands in his own, "I really am fine. He missed and my curse hit."

"What did he try to do to you?" Scorpius asked, slowly allowing himself to relax. When he had heard Smith and Al had had an altercation, he had been in the middle of a double hour of Transfiguration. Since McGonagall had still come in to class, Frank and Rose reasoned that the situation could not have been too bad. They had resolutely refused to let him ask McGonagall if he could go check on his boyfriend, so that had left him with a lot of time. He had been able to come up with thirty different ways Al could have been hurt without the Headmistress being summoned and forty five different ways to kill Justin Smith.

"He only tried to confound me, love. Calm down." It was only when his words made Scorpius's eyes widen and his mouth drop open that Al realised what he'd said. His cheeks flushed with colour as he rushed to clarify, "I-I mean, I don't _love_ you—not that I'm not falling in love with you—wait, no, that came out wrong. I only meant—"

Scorpius laughed, doubling over as he did. He had never seen Al so flustered in his life! It was so completely adorable!

When he finally straightened, still chuckling, he saw that Al was leaning back against the windowsill, glaring at him.

"That wasn't funny." Al said, his voice hard, "I'm sorry, the word just slipped out. It won't happen again." He made to walk away but Scorpius was too quick for him, placing his hands on the windowsill on either side of Al's body and moving forward so Al was effectively caged in.

Green eyes looked up at him warily and Scorpius smiled softly, "I like the nickname." He leaned forward so his breath tickled Al's ear, "I like it even more than 'Scor'. You know why?"

Al couldn't find his voice for a moment, and when he finally did, it was husky. "Why?"

Scorpius pulled back enough to nudge Al's nose with his own, "Because only you would ever call me that."

Al couldn't stop the smile that curved his lips, "You are such a sap."

Scorpius touched their lips together, "I'm _your_ sap." He murmured.

Al hummed his approval of those words as he moved into the kiss. Scorpius let him prolong the contact with each kiss before finally nibbling on Al's lower lip, earning himself a needy whimper as Al readily parted his lips for him. Scorpius's tongue left no inch of his boyfriend's mouth untouched and coaxed Al's tongue to join in the exploration, groaning his approval when it did. When Al finally broke away to take a breath, Scorpius began kissing the line of Al's jaw and continuing downwards along his neck.

"Scor." Al moaned softly as he let his head fall back, offering more of his throat for his boyfriend's perusal.

"You realise that you both are in the middle of a fairly busy corridor, right?"

Al opened one eye, "Go away, Louis."

Scorpius chuckled, biting Al's neck lightly before stepping back, "Louis happens to be right, Al."

Al scowled, turning to his cousin, "Look at what you did. He stopped!"

"In good time too." Louis said dryly, nodding his head to a trio of professors who just turned the corner into their corridor.

Al wrinkled his nose in displeasure and Scorpius couldn't help but lean forward and kiss that nose, "Later. I promise."

"You're always promising me things. You should be careful about that." Al said, grinning.

"It's alright. I trust you not to abuse my promises." Scorpius said magnanimously.

"Scor, you should know better than to trust a Slytherin." Louis reproached, dodging his cousin's fist with a laugh.

"Don't you have a class to get to, Louis?" Al asked, annoyed.

"No. I was actually searching for you. I've been all over the castle. That map of your father's would have been very useful to me today. Too bad your mum forbade him from giving it to you." Louis said, sighing at the loss.

Al straightened, "You were looking for me?"

"Yes. I wanted to talk to you, if that's alright." He looked to Scor questioningly.

With a laugh Scor shrugged, "I actually do have a class right now. I just knew I wouldn't be able to concentrate before making sure Al was okay though. I'll head off now." He wrapped an arm around Al's waist and pulled him close, "Bye." He said with a small smile.

Al pressed a quick kiss to his lips, "Bye."

Once Scorpius was out of sight, Al turned to Louis, frowning. "Is this about what I think it's about?"

"Probably." Louis said, smiling sheepishly.

"And I'm not going to be able to convince you to let it go?" Al made sure.

"Nope. You either talk to me, or I tell our family." Louis quipped.

Al scowled, "That's low."

"It's also true." Louis hesitated, then ventured, "You said it never disappeared and it never would, but I've never seen you happier than you've been these past few weeks. Is it still there?"

Sighing, Al ran a hand through his perfectly styled hair, "In the back of my mind, yes. It's not something you or I can fix, Lou. It's about the way I think, and the way I see things. The way most of the world sees things. It can't be helped."

Louis frowned, "Al, what's this about?"

Al shook his head, "Really, just let it go."

"But I'm worried!" Louis exclaimed, starting to pace.

"You don't need to be. I swear. I'm not about to off myself."

Louis froze, horror colouring his face, "You thought about killing yourself?!"

"What?! NO! I'm saying it's something I'd never do! Come on, what reason could I possibly have to want to kill myself? I've got Scorpius, my friends, and you guys as family. My life is pretty fucking brilliant at the moment." Al said, grinning.

Louis sighed in relief, "So I don't have to worry?"

"If I say no, would that really stop you?"

"Probably not." Louis admitted.

Al chuckled, "You Gryffindors are a sappy bunch." He said, shaking his head, "I'm fine, Lou. I promise. If I ever need to talk, I'll come find you."

"You promise?" Louis pressed, staring at his cousin. He knew what a promise meant to Al. His cousin never went back on his word.

Al nodded, "I promise."

"Okay then." The tension seemed to drain out of Louis, "You and Scorpius looked pretty hot and heavy when I walked up."

Al sighed, reminiscing, "We were. It was bloody amazing. I can't believe I never kissed someone before this. If I'd known it would be this good, I reckon I'd have tried it before."

Louis snorted, "Please. I've kissed my share of people, and I don't think I've ever looked as thoroughly satisfied as you did."

"So you're saying it's because I'm kissing Scorpius." Al hadn't thought of it that way.

Louis nodded, "You two just seem to…I don't know, fit."

"Like we're made for each other?" Al winced as he said the words.

Louis laughed at the expression on his face, "Yes, I'd say that's what I meant."

"Funnily enough, you're not the first person to tell me that." Al said, bemused, "To think I started out this year hating him."

"Never saw this coming, did you?"

"Not at all."

* * *

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! I'm glad people are enjoying this story :)

Do leave a review!

Living to Laugh and Love


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I only own the storyline and the original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling

* * *

"Are you sure we aren't going to get caught?"

"You are such a goody-two-shoes." Al muttered, pulling Scorpius along the corridor.

"I'm supposed to be doing rounds." Scorpius said, frowning, fingering his prefect badge.

Al rolled his eyes, "And I'm supposed to be in bed, far away from you. Is that what you want?"

Scorpius's grip tightened on Al's hand, "No." He admitted.

Al gave him a knowing smile that was tinged with exasperation, "Then shut up, and follow me."

Scorpius sighed resignedly, following Al through the castle. He stopped walking when he realised they were heading for the Gryffindor tower.

"Al? Why are we heading this way?"

Al sighed, turning to Scorpius, "Do you trust me?"

Scorpius didn't even have to think. "Of course I do."

"Then stop questioning me. Do you want this to be a surprise or not?"

Scorpius pouted, "I just don't see what the surprise is if we're only going to the Gryffindor Common Room."

"You are so bloody impatient, love." Al mused, shaking his head.

"So I've been told." Scorpius said as they stopped in front of the Fat Lady.

"You're letting the Slytherin corrupt you, Mr Malfoy. Take care." She said as she swung outwards to admit them when Scorpius uttered the password.

"I'm inclined to agree with her. Al, what are we _doing_ here?"

Al ignored him this time, heading straight for the fireplace. Taking out his wand, Al tapped five seemingly random stones with his wand. The stones folded into one another to reveal a hidden staircase that went up.

Scorpius gasped, walking around the space, "How did you know that was there?"

"Teddy told me about it. He found it when he was in school here. Apparently his dad had written about it in one of his diaries. Even my dad doesn't know it exists." Al said, pulling Scorpius into the alcove and tapping his wand to the wall once more. The bricks rearranged themselves, closing off the opening at the Gryffindor Common Room.

"From what I've heard from your siblings, your dad has a map of the whole school that Teddy's dad helped write. Wouldn't he have put this in?" Scorpius wondered, following Al up the stairs.

Al chuckled, "They weren't called Marauders for nothing. Teddy said that in the diary his dad explained that they couldn't be sure what house the students who ended up with the map would be in. And what kind of Gryffindors would they be if they gave away house secrets?"

"And yet his son turned around and told the secret to a Slytherin?" Scorpius chuckled, "Oh, the irony."

Al nudged Scorpius's shoulder with his, "Fuck you." He said with no real anger, "Besides, Teddy told me about this before I even started school. He didn't know I wouldn't be in Gryffindor. He used to bring Victoire up here. If I'm right, and I'm the only one he told, then it should look exactly like he described it." Al stopped in front of a large, heavy-looking wooden door.

When turning the knob didn't work Al tried _alohamora_. That too produced no result. Al frowned, studying the door thoughtfully before gesturing for Scorpius to move back.

Scorpius frowned, "Al, what are you—" He cut himself off when Al all but threw himself at the door. At the impact, the door shuddered and fell backwards the rusted hinges coming off, and Al fell with it. Scorpius rushed to kneel next to his crazy boyfriend, "Al! Merlin, are you hurt?"

Al just groaned as he sat up, flashing a grin at Scorpius as he dusted himself off, "I knew that would work." He looked around the room and his eyes widened, "Whoa!"

Seeing that Al wasn't hurt, Scorpius also perused the room, feeling his lips part in surprise as he did. He had expected a dusty room with perhaps a couch, table and maybe, since Teddy had apparently brought Victoire up here, a bed. What he saw was no dusty room.

The room was circular in shape but only the half to Scorpius's left was walled. The other half was open, giving whoever was in the room a spectacular view of the quidditch grounds and the Forbidden Forest. The room did have a full ceiling though – which meant that rain and snow couldn't get in.

Pushed up against the walled half was a large double bed complete with scarlet and gold sheets and pillows. Beside it was a bedside table on one side and a large shelf lined with books on the other. Four brooms, old ones that looked as if they hadn't been used in years, were piled up beside the door. A throw rug occupied the middle of the room and a mirror stood a little away from the bedside table. It didn't look like someone hadn't been there in over ten years.

"Do you think the house elves know about this place?" Scorpius asked, moving towards the bed, running his finger along the line of one of the rows of the bookshelf. Not a speck of dirt.

"They must." Al nodded, moving in the opposite direction toward the open half of the room. With no railing whatsoever, Al felt as if he stood at the edge of the world when he stood there.

"Al." Scorpius's voice held fear, "Come here."

Smiling inwardly, Al turned and made his way to where his boyfriend stood by the bed. He slipped his arms around Scorpius and leaned forward, one of his hands pulling away the tie in the Gryffindor's hair. "So, what do you think?"

"I think I want to break in the bed." Scorpius muttered huskily as his hair fell out of its ponytail and around his face, shoulders and back.

"And I think that's a great idea." Al conceded, closing the distance between their faces.

Combing his hands through Scorpius's silky hair, Al held his boyfriend's head in an angle that allowed him to dominate the kiss. Loving this new side of Al, Scorpius pressed himself up against the Slytherin. Al broke the kiss, and, ignoring Scorpius's whine of protest, he kissed the line of his boyfriend's jaw to his ear, nibbling on the pierced lobe there, earning a needy whimper from Scorpius.

"You're mine." Al whispered hotly against the Gryffindor's ear.

"Yours." Scorpius agreed, wrapping his arms tighter around Al's shoulders and jumping up to link his legs around Al's waist.

Al instinctively placed his hands on Scorpius's butt, kneading it as he pressed him back against the bookshelf, kissing him once more.

"Mmnnngh!" Scorpius whimpered, pulling away from the kiss as Al's erection rocked against his own, "Fuck! Al!"

"You're never going to do this with anyone else." Al said through rough, biting kisses that he placed along Scorpius's neck, "Ever again."

"Oh, Merlin!" Scorpius threw his head back as Al's hands gripped his ass particularly hard, "Ungh! No. Never again." He promised, tightening his grip on Al's neck with his hands and waist with his legs as he tried to grind harder against Al's erection, "I won't want to."

"Because you only want _me_." Al said, raising his head to hit Scorpius with the impact of those green eyes that were filled with dark desire. Just that look took him over the edge.

Throwing his head back, he moaned Al's name loudly as he came in his pants. The orgasm was a powerful one, and it took Scorpius a few minutes to come down from it. In that time, Al drew him close and deposited him on the bed on his back, before moving to lie beside him.

"What exactly did Smith say to you?" Scorpius asked finally, when he was done catching his breath. He turned his head to look at Al's shadowed face, reaching up to cup his cheek with one hand, caressing his cheekbone with a finger. "Tell me."

"Nothing important." Al said, turning his head to kiss Scorpius's palm.

Having expected an answer along those lines, Scorpius just sighed, looking up at Al with soft silver eyes, "You know you're _it_ for me, Al. It may be too early for me to be saying stuff like this, but it's true. You were always it for me. No one else could ever match up."

His words earned him a small but genuine smile, and the darkness in those green eyes dissipated slightly, "It's not too early."

Scorpius knew what Al was trying to say and grinned, showing that he understood. Perhaps Al couldn't voice his feelings yet the way Scorpius could, but he knew Al felt the same way. And that was enough. In fact, it was more than Scorpius had ever dreamed he'd have.

With that thought in mind, he turned and reached for Al's belt, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants. Al's eyes widened, "Scor, what are you—ungh!" Al arched up into his touch as he pressed his hand to the clothed erection, shutting those green eyes as a look of pure ecstasy crossed his face.

"It doesn't seem fair that I have all the fun." Scorpius said, moving closer as he pushed Al's pants and underwear down, leaving him bare, hard and leaking. Scorpius couldn't help but lick his lips.

"You don't have to." Al said, his voice rough, and when Scorpius looked to him he saw that's Al's gaze was focussed on his mouth.

Scorpius chuckled, "Oh, love, I _want_ to."

That being said, he reached for Al and wrapped his hand around the long, hard length making his boyfriend whimper with need. Scorpius shifted so that he was pressed up against Al's side, his hand gliding slowly up and down Al's shaft as he pressed soft, lingering kisses along Al's neck and jaw. Al let out a harsh breath as Scorpius flicked his thumb over the head of Al's erection, spreading the pre-cum over the length so it was easier to jerk his boyfriend off. Scorpius increased the speed of his motion and Al moaned, fisting the sheets on either side of him as his head turned toward Scorpius, searching.

Scorpius leaned forward and caught Al's lips in a bruising kiss, marvelling at how utterly gorgeous his boyfriend was, especially like this. His jet-black hair was at its messy best and those green eyes were large and dilated with pleasure. Soft pink lips were parted and the most delicious sounds left them.

"Oh! Mmnh! Scor!" Al gasped, "I-I'm going to—"

Scorpius felt a rush of satisfaction as his hand became coated with Al's cum. He grinned and brought his hand up to his face, licking one finger clean as Al watched hungrily. "Mmm." Scorpius hummed, "Yummy."

"Merlin." Al breathed, tangling his hand in Scorpius's hair and crashing their lips together. He could taste himself on Scorpius's tongue, and it was incredibly arousing. If he hadn't just gotten off, he would desperately need to.

Al broke off the kiss and reached for his wand, muttering a cleaning spell so both Scorpius and he could lie comfortably without worrying about the mess they had made of one another.

Scorpius sighed contentedly and curled up against Al, resting his head on Al's chest, "You know, everything you made me say when you had me up against the bookshelf stands for you as well."

Al chuckled, "I know, love."

"Good." Silence reigned between them for a long moment, before Scorpius asked, "How come you haven't been up here before?"

Al lifted his head to meet his boyfriend's silver gaze, amused and thrilled by the warm look in them, "I didn't really have anyone to come with, did I? I didn't want to tell Fran and Dai about it. If I did, they'd always be up here."

Scorpius grimaced at that thought and then frowned, "But what about your cousins? Or your siblings? I'm sure they would have loved to explore this place with you."

Al shook his head; "They would have been annoyed with Teddy for not telling _them_ about it. Besides, I always saw this place as somewhere I could maybe come for refuge. What kind of refuge would it have been if everyone knew about it?"

Scorpius sat up, "A refuge? A refuge from what?" He asked, confused.

Al looked away from him, a faraway look coming into his eyes, "From my thoughts. From other people's opinions and comments. From my family and friends." Al sighed.

Scorpius shifted closer to his boyfriend, "Don't come up here to hide from me." He said solemnly, running his hand through Al's short black hair, "Don't ever feel like you need to."

Al leaned forward and kissed Scorpius's forehead, "You know, there are times when I feel like I'm alone, even when I'm surrounded by people, because of how different I am."

Scorpius nuzzled Al's cheek, "Different from who, love?"

"Anyone who matters." Al admitted softly, burying his face in the crook of Scorpius's neck, inhaling the scent of his hair.

"Oh, Al." Scorpius wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and held him close; "Being different is what makes you so special. I love that you're different."

Silence met his words and Scorpius knew Al was not convinced, but he decided to let it go, opting to hold Al instead. He knew he would get another opportunity to convince his boyfriend to believe him. For now, it was enough that Al was willing to let the Gryffindor comfort him.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Read and review!

Living to Laugh and Love


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Usually, when Al woke up, he couldn't feel his toes, because in the middle of November at Hogwarts, no matter _how_ many heating spells he cast the previous night, temperatures would always be just above freezing.

That morning was different though. That morning Al woke up warm. He felt the cocoon of heat that surrounded him shift slightly, his mind taking more time than his body to understand the situation.

"You're so fucking beautiful." A voice breathed as something wet traced the shell of his ear.

"Mmm." Al smiled, tilting his head back to receive Scorpius's kiss, which was as gentle as it was enthusiastic. "Don't call me beautiful." He pulled away to say, frowning slightly as his boyfriend's words registered.

Scorpius chuckled, "Not in front of other people." He compromised.

Al seemed to accept that, sighing and snuggling further into the arms that were wrapped around him.

And then suddenly, he was sitting up, back straight and eyes wide.

Scorpius let out a groan; his arms, which had been wrapped around Al when he had bolted upright, felt like someone had tried to take them out of their sockets and bloody hell, it hurt! "Al!" He whined, annoyed.

"What time is it?" Al asked, looking around for his wand and finally casting a _tempus_ charm. 11:00 a.m. "Oh fuck." Al groaned, letting his head fall into his hands.

Scorpius frowned, "What is it? So we got up a little late. Why is that a problem?"

"Why is that a problem?" Al repeated incredulously, "We're stuck up here Scor!"

"No we aren't." Scorpius frowned, "We just need to...oh."

They couldn't use the Gryffindor Common Room to exit their room because at this time in the morning, it would be buzzing with activity.

Scorpius cast his eyes around the room, passing over then doubling back to the four brooms that lay in a heap by the door. He nudged his boyfriend who looked up at him, annoyed, and nodded to the brooms. Quickly catching on to Scorpius's line of thinking, Al got out of bed and went to inspect the brooms.

"I don't know." He said contemplatively, "They look like they're ancient. They can't possibly be safe."

"It's our only option." Scorpius pointed out, coming up behind him and curling his arms around Al's waist, "Unless you want to stay up here for the rest of the day. I admit I'm not entirely opposed to that idea." He nuzzled the back of Al's neck.

Al turned around in Scorpius's arms and frowned at him, "What about food? We would get hungry at some point. Not to mention, my family will completely lose their mind if they can't find me for a whole day."

Scorpius pouted, "I hate it when you're thinking rationally."

Al laughed at that, brushing a quick kiss to Scorpius's lips, "Around you, love, it's a fairly rare thing."

He picked up one of the brooms and tried a test flight around the room. The broom was a bit shaky, but otherwise it didn't seem to have suffered too much because of its years of neglect.

"It should be enough to get us down." Al said, nodding at Scorpius to take one of the remaining brooms. Then, both of them flew out of the room and had an impromptu race to the Black Lake. They landed in a heap of tangled limbs and laughter at the clearing by the lake.

"I won." Al said with a grin.

"Only because you cheated." Scorpius said, grinning as well. His eyes took in Al's shirtless form with desire so obvious that it delighted his boyfriend.

"You're a quidditch player. You ought to be able to concentrate enough while you're flying to ignore me removing my shirt." Al said with a wicked gleam in his green eyes.

Scorpius shifted so he was hovering over his boyfriend, his hands on Al's lean but perfectly defined chest, "I don't think I could ever ignore you removing your shirt, love." He bent down to kiss Al just as a throat cleared itself angrily.

Both boys stiffened, not having realised they had an audience. They turned their heads toward the sound and each of them had a different reaction to the person they saw sitting beneath one of the trees nearby. Justin Smith had obviously come out to the lake to be alone since not one of his friends was in sight.

Al's lips curved in a smug smile, because really, he couldn't have asked for a better way to show Smith that Scorpius was well and truly his. For good.

Scorpius on the other hand frowned, his eyes flashing with temper as he remembered the previous afternoon and the hour he had spent not knowing if Al had been hurt by the Hufflepuff boy.

Smith stood, his face turning red with anger at Al's obvious glee, his eyes swivelling to meet Scorpius's, "I honestly thought you had better taste than this." He hissed, gesturing at Al.

Scorpius raised a single brow before turning and blatantly checking Al out from head to toe. He glanced over at Smith, "Oh, I'd say my taste has improved drastically."

Smith's eyes narrowed, "You went from dating a perfectly respectable wizard from a noble family to dating the defective Potter-Weasley."

Scorpius didn't have to look at Al to know how Smith's words had affected him. He felt his boyfriend stiffen at his side and put an arm around him in the hope of being comforting, "I don't recall ever calling what the two of us did 'dating', Smith."

Smith growled angrily, "What the hell does he have that I don't? He's a sneaky, manipulative Slytherin with next-to-no friends! He's barely accepted by his family and for good reason!" Smith threw his arms up in the air, "A Potter in Slytherin?! What's the bet that whatever bit of Voldemort that was in Harry Potter got passed on to this one? He's a bloody freak!"

So livid was Scorpius that he forgot to worry about Al. Instead, he pulled out his wand and waved it in a silent spell that had Smith hanging ten feet in the air, pinned to the tree trunk. "I could let you drop now and not feel one iota of remorse for having disfigured you. In fact, I could _kill_ you now without feeling the least bit bad about it." He waited for the fear to enter Smith's eyes before continuing, "I won't though, because I don't want to spend the rest of my life separated from Al and rotting in Azkaban." He lowered Smith five feet then let him fall the rest of the way, watching with some satisfaction as pain crossed the boy's face when he landed. Scorpius strode toward the Hufflepuff, grabbing him by the collar and bringing his face up so it was inches away from his own, "You utter so much as one more word, good or bad, about the man I love, and I swear I will hunt you down and make you regret it. Do you understand?"

Smith's eyes flashed with fear, surprise, pain and regret as he slowly nodded. Scorpius let go of his collar and turned to Al, freezing when he realised he was alone at the clearing with Smith. Al was gone.

* * *

 **Hello everyone :) It's so nice to see that all of you like this story!**

 **Anyway, I'm putting up two chapters today. So, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year :D**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I own only the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Al had managed to avoid all the members of his family, Fran and Damien on his way up to the Room of Requirement. He wanted to be alone. He wanted to gather his thoughts and work through his emotions, and he wanted to do that without being seen or interrupted. He also, he admitted to himself very softly in the confines of his head, wanted to cry. The Room of Requirement provided him with a large spacious room that resembled the room in the Gryffindor tower where Al and Scorpius had just spent the night. The one thing it had that the room hadn't had was a warm and cosy fireplace with a comfortable armchair in front of it. Al made a beeline for the chair and curled up on it, wrapping his arms around his knees and resting his chin on them.

Nothing Smith had said was new to Al. He had heard it all before. His first year at Hogwarts had been a nightmare because of people whose line of thinking hadn't been too different from Smith's. When he had first entered Hogwarts, Al had been timid, afraid, and just a little bit excited. He remembered the conversation he had had with his father on Platform 9 and 3/4. His father's words had given Al the courage to believe that it was all right to be in Slytherin, which the Sorting Hat had picked up on and approved of. Those words, however, had not prepared Al for the rest of the world's reactions.

The Daily Prophet had released an article a week after he was Sorted, telling the world he was in Slytherin and stating numerous reasons as to why this fact was disturbing and wrong. Some of the reasons had been bizarre, and very similar to what Smith had said, but others were more reasonable. After all, most of Voldemort's followers had come from Slytherin, so no one was particularly inclined to be accepting of a Slytherin, even if he was the Chosen One's son. Perhaps _especially_ because he was the Chosen One's son.

Al had spent that first year dogged by insults and humiliating words. His family, though they loved him to death, had been fairly ignorant of the abuse he faced at the hands of his peers and seniors because no one was stupid enough to insult him when they were around and Al was too proud and stubborn, even then, to ask for help.

It had taken Al till Christmas that first year to figure out that he wasn't like the rest of his family and no one was about to let him forget that. So he had distanced himself from his family in school. He had learned to put up a façade of complete and utter disinterest that had his bullies quickly tiring of using him as a target because of his lack of a reaction. And, to his greatest advantage, he had learned to be quick to use his wand to curse when someone tried to get a punch in.

The sound of doors opening drew Al from his thoughts and he frowned, glancing back at the entrance of the room. He had wished to be alone, so really, no one should have been able to get in.

When he saw who was standing there panting at the entrance though, he couldn't help a bemused smile. Evidently, the room knew what he wanted better than he did because the sight of Scorpius's flushed face made warmth rush through Al.

Scorpius took long strides to reach him quickly, the doors closing behind him. He reached Al and dropped to his knees in front of the chair his boyfriend was curled up in, looking lost and alone.

"He's a fucking moron." Scorpius said, his tone fierce as he cradled Al's face in his hands.

Al let out a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a sob. And suddenly, the tears that he had felt earlier began to fall, and the crushing feeling of loneliness threatened to overwhelm him. Al trembled as he began crying in earnest.

Scorpius immediately squeezed himself onto the armchair, his arms going around the other boy, holding him tightly as he ran a soothing hand up and down Al's back. He let Al cry; his own eyes feeling a little wet as he watched the boy whose composure he'd always admired come apart.

When the crying subsided, words began falling out of Al's mouth and Al couldn't bring himself to stop talking. He told Scorpius about his first year. He told Scorpius about how lonely he had been when he had come home that Christmas. How angry he had been when he had seen Scorpius integrate himself effortlessly into the Potter-Weasley bunch. Scorpius who had gotten Sorted into Gryffindor where Al had not. Scorpius who was suddenly close to James in a way Al only wished he could be.

"I've just always been so bloody _jealous_ of you." Al admitted quietly, burying his face in the crook of Scorpius's neck, "I felt like maybe both of us had just been born into the wrong families. You certainly fit in well with mine and I'm sure I wouldn't be entirely out of place in yours."

Scorpius tightened his arms around his boyfriend, nuzzling his cheek as he tilted Al's head back and looked down at his face. "Have you ever thought, love, that maybe we were made that way because we were meant to find one another? Everything you said about my relationship with your family and how you would get along with mine only makes it easier for us to be together." Scorpius said gently, running his fingers through the Slytherin's soft hair, "Imagine if I had gotten Sorted into Slytherin and you had been in Gryffindor. We might have had a lot more than just our pride standing between us."

Al shivered slightly at the thought, his hold on the Gryffindor tightening. "I'm sorry I was such a git to you for five years, Scor."

"I'm sorry I didn't realise how lonely you were, Al." Scorpius leaned back to slowly run his fingers down the side of Al's face, "Because you were never alone. I was always there. I've always been there for you, even when you didn't know it. And I always will be."

Al's green eyes looked up at him for a long moment before his lips curved in a soft smile, "I know." He reached up to curl his hand around Scorpius's neck, guiding his face forward so their lips met in slow, lingering kisses that had both of them feeling warm and loved.

After an indeterminate amount of time, Al sighed, "We should go find everyone else."

Scorpius nodded, leaning forward to press a kiss on Al's forehead, "I love that you're different Al."

In contrast to the previous night, Al's eyes lit up and he chuckled, "I'll try to remember that."

* * *

 **There you go :) Read and review please!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Scorpius carded a hand through his boyfriend's hair, watching as Al slept peacefully with his head on the Gryffindor's lap in the middle of a very busy Gryffindor Common Room. Once in a while, someone working near them paused to look at them, but for the most part their cuddling was accepted as normal behaviour now.

"He can sleep through anything, can't he?" James muttered with some amount of amazement in his voice as he dropped down onto the armchair beside the couch Scorpius and Al occupied by the fireplace.

"Mmm." Was Scorpius's only response as he continued to watch Al, a sense of peace and joy filling him to the brim. And love. Because Scorpius had to admit to himself now that he was head over heels in love with Albus Severus Potter. He had even said as much to Smith, though he had not even been sure of what he'd felt until he had said it. Then everything had fallen into place within him. Of course he loved Al. He had been halfway in love before he had even started talking to the Slytherin!

James's snort of laughter brought Scorpius out of his thoughts, and his grey eyes shifted to fix on the elder Potter's face. "What?"

"You're in love with him, aren't you?" James asked with a grin.

Scorpius wasn't too surprised that James had picked up on his feelings. He had always been ridiculously good at reading people. Scorpius nodded in response, his eyes shifting back to Al's face. Green eyes were shut and dark lashes rested on Al's lightly tanned cheeks. Soft bow lips were slightly parted to allow air to pass through the gap and one of Al's hands were clasped in his own.

"You should tell him." James said softly, "Al and I may not be best friends, but I know my little brother. He feels the same way."

Scorpius couldn't help his grin, "I know." It had been more than a month of bliss now and Scorpius just knew it would be this way for the rest of their lives.

"Did your parents reply to your letter?" James asked, leaning back in his seat.

"Mother was ecstatic that I was serious enough about someone to finally tell them about him. Father approved of the fact that Al was in Slytherin. Said he was glad I had the good sense to date the one sane Potter. Al was particularly thrilled by that comment." Scorpius said with a chuckle, remembering Al's gleeful expression when he had read the Malfoys' letter aloud for him.

James's lips quirked in a somewhat sad smile, "Al isn't used to being differentiated from the rest of the family in a good way."

Scorpius looked up sharply at that, "What does that mean?"

"I know he had a rough first year." James admitted, running a hand through his hair, "I was keeping an eye on him, and I even tried to talk to him about it a few times. Not that it helped. You're good for him though, Scor. I can tell."

Scorpius managed a smile, "Thanks. He's good for me too."

"I agree wholeheartedly. If you had told me you would be sneaking around the halls at night and shirking prefect duty in September I would have laughed." James smirked, "Al achieved the impossible."

Scorpius gave him a half-hearted glare, "Oh, shut up."

"Are you going to ask him to Hogsmeade this weekend?" James asked.

"Fran said Al was planning to ask me, but he hasn't got around to it yet." Scorpius admitted, shrugging.

James chuckled, "Well, this is the last Hogsmeade weekend of the year. I'd make a move, mate."

Scorpius nodded, his lips tugging downwards at the corners as he looked down at his sleeping boyfriend. James, noticing the change in expression, frowned, "What's wrong?"

Scorpius hesitated then sighed, "Has Al said anything to you about Christmas?"

Confusion entered the elder Potter's brown eyes, "No? Why? Should he have?"

"No, it's just..." Scorpius looked up at James, "I really thought he would want to come stay with me. Or that he'd ask me to come stay at yours."

Understanding, James gave him a reassuring smile, "You visit every Christmas, Scor. I'm sure Al didn't think he needed to invite you."

Scorpius blinked, "Really?"

"Really." James said, smiling slightly, "As for Al asking to visit your house, you ought to know better. He will never ask. The closest he's going to come to asking is dropping hints about meeting your family. If you want him to come home with you, _you_ need to ask him."

Scorpius considered that, some of the worry that had been weighing on him over the past few days dissipating, "He's constantly telling me he thinks my father sounds like the coolest person ever. He wants Father to introduce him to his vampire clients."

James snorted, "He would." He said, looking fondly at his younger brother, "You know, these past few months have been the most I've seen Al since we started school here. I didn't realise it before, but I missed him."

Scorpius smiled softly, "I think he missed you as well."

James grinned and started to say something but was interrupted when Lily came and sat herself down on Al's stomach before either he or Scorpius could protest.

Al grunted, waking with a start and doubling over, his head hitting Scorpius's chin at his sudden movement making the Gryffindor cry out more in surprise than pain. Al groaned pitifully, arms curled around his stomach. He threw Lily a sleepy glare before turning to Scorpius, green eyes apologetic, "Are you okay?"

Scorpius chuckled, leaning forward to kiss Al full on the mouth, not caring about their audience, "You're adorable." He murmured against Al's lips, grinning.

Al's expression turned indignant as he pulled away, "I am _not_."

Scorpius's grin widened, "You are. And I love it." He said before leaning forward to capture Al's lips in a kiss once more. This time it was more than a simple press of lips, and when Scorpius's tongue darted out to wet Al's lips, Al couldn't stop himself from rearranging his limbs so he could kiss his boyfriend more comfortably.

"My eyes! My eyes!" James protested loudly, even as Lily simply giggled.

Having forgotten completely that they were out in public, in the common room, and not up in their secret room, Scorpius tried to break off the kiss, placing his hands on Al's shoulders and pushing slightly. Al reluctantly let him pull away from the kiss, pouting slightly as he did. Scorpius's face was flushed with embarrassment but because of how Al was now sitting, straddling him, Al could feel just how aroused the Gryffindor really was by their antics. Al leaned forward to place his lips at Scorpius's ear, using the proximity to allow his erection to press against the Gryffindor's, "Tease."

Scorpius turned a brighter shade of red as he kept his hands on Al's hips to ensure the Slytherin didn't get up and leave him exposed to the rest of the common room's scrutiny. "I didn't mean to be." He said, hoping this would appease his always-need-to-get-even boyfriend. There had been a few incidents over the past few weeks where just as things had started getting hot and heavy between them, Scorpius had pulled away, mindful of their less-than-private surroundings. Each time, Al had punished Scorpius brutally later by bringing him to the brink of release and not allowing him to come until he was practically sobbing with need. Scorpius groaned silently as he became a little harder. Now was not the time for these thoughts!

Al leaned back slightly to study his boyfriend's expression, then nodded, "Alright, I'll let it slide." Scorpius knew better than to believe that was the end of that, so he simply raised a single brow, "What's the catch?"

Al grinned, "You come to Hogsmeade with me this weekend."

Scorpius's eyebrows rose in surprise and his grey eyes darted to meet James's amused gaze before returning to Al's face, "Done." He said, a wide smile curving his lips.

Al pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, "That's good. Now," Al turned to Lily, scowling, "what did I do to deserve that rude awakening?"

"How is it you don't curse her first and ask questions later?" James asked, annoyed.

Sensing that it was safe now, Al moved off Scorpius's lap and onto the couch, not protesting when his boyfriend kept an arm wrapped around his waist, "Because she would complain to Mum."

Lily looked offended, "I would _not_!"

James snorted, "Yes, you would." He retorted before nodding to his brother, "I find that reason acceptable."

"Yes, because your acceptance matters to me." Al said, rolling his eyes.

"Let's not get off topic, boys. Lils, I'm curious about why you woke Al up as well." Scorpius said, looking to the only Potter female.

"I just had a letter from Mum." Lily admitted grumpily, still not over her brothers' accusations, "Winter holidays start next week and she says she hasn't had a letter from you, Al, since Halloween. She wanted to know if Scor was coming over and if you were going to his."

Al's brows furrowed, "But Scorpius always comes over during winter holidays." He pointed out, looking to his boyfriend for confirmation.

Scorpius grinned, "I do. I'll be coming this year too."

Lily nodded, "I'll let Mum know then. You aren't going to Malfoy Manor, Al?"

"Actually," Scorpius spoke up, "I wanted to talk to you about that, Al."

Al looked to him, surprised, "Oh. Do you want to go up to your room?"

Scorpius nodded, flashing his boyfriend's siblings an apologetic smile before getting up and leading Al up to his room. Lorcan and Frank were both in the room and called out a greeting to the boys as they came in. Lorcan and Al were on much better terms now, especially since Lily had dumped the boy two weeks after Halloween for refusing to defile her in anyway for fear of her brothers.

Returning the greetings, Scorpius and Al made a beeline for the bed. Once on it, Scorpius spelled the curtains shut and muttered privacy and silencing charms before putting his wand away under his pillow. Al was already lying down on his back, green eyes watching Scorpius's face intently. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Would you like to come home for Christmas?" Scorpius blurted, his face flushing with colour.

Al's eyebrows rose, "Seriously?"

When Scorpius nodded, a small frown tugged on Al's lips, "Oh. I thought you didn't want me to meet your family just yet. I completely understand if that's the case. You don't need to invite me just because Lily mentioned it."

Scorpius's eyes grew wide, "What? Why would you think _that_?"

Al looked a little uncomfortable now and he fidgeted, "Well, I just thought maybe it was too soon. You didn't mention it at all so I thought—"

Scorpius moved closer and cupped Al's face with his hands, cutting off his words, "I didn't mention it because I was waiting for you to bring it up. I was actually waiting for you to invite me to yours as well."

"Invite you?" Al sounded incredulous, "You're more like family than I am for that bunch! What do you need an invitation for?"

Scorpius frowned at his boyfriend's words, "Al."

For once, Al's cheeks flushed with colour, "Right, sorry." He had promised Scorpius he would stop putting himself down, especially with regard to his family and how different he was to them. "I only meant that you've been there every winter since our first year. I didn't think you'd need an invitation."

"That's what James said." Scorpius admitted, smiling slightly, "And you're both right. I suppose I don't really need an invitation to your house. But you do need an invitation to mine." He shifted so he was laying on his side, his front pressed against Al's side, his fingers laced through one of Al's hands, resting on the Slytherin's flat stomach. "Would you like to come to Malfoy Manor and stay with me for a week, Albus?"

Al looked amused, "Albus?"

Scorpius grinned, "It felt like the moment to say 'Albus' rather than 'Al'."

Al chuckled, "You are such a nutter." He shifted so he lay on his side as well, looping one of his legs over Scorpius's waist and bringing the Gryffindor closer, "I'd love to come stay with you for a week."

"Brilliant." Scorpius said, his eyes shining with excitement as he closed the distance between them and kissed his boyfriend. Al hummed against his lips, smiling as his leg tightened around Scorpius's waist bringing their cocks in line with one another.

"Fuck." Scorpius breathed, lying back and arching his upper body as Al shifted to hover above him, his lips firmly attached to the Gryffindor's neck. Slowly, he lowered his pelvis onto Scorpius's and both boys groaned at the delicious contact, even though there were several layers of clothes between them. Al slowly, torturously, began to frot against Scorpius, his kisses in time with his slow thrusts. Scorpius gasped, hissed and cursed in turn as he felt pleasure course through him. His fingers reached for Al's belt, undoing the buckle and buttons, "I want to feel you." He moaned, "Please, Al."

Al let out a shaky breath, "Fuck, yes." He agreed, making quick work of Scorpius's pants and underwear, pulling them off and then pulling off his own.

This time, when he allowed his lower half to sink into Scorpius's, both boys let out choked moans of pleasure and cursed. Al couldn't help but wonder if it was this good for all gay couples or if this was just him and Scorpius. Pushing that question out of his head, Al focused on rutting against Scorpius in just the right way to render the usually composed Gryffindor into a puddle of high-strung, blubbering, pleasure-drunk nerves and limbs.

"Mmm! Ngh! Ah!" Scorpius pulled at the back of Al's head, bringing him down to kiss him as thoroughly as he could before his head fell back in another moan, "Fuck, Al! You feel so good, love. So fucking _good_."

Al let out a whimper; too busy concentrating on not coming to bother with forming words. Fuck, but Scorpius looked sexy as hell in this state. The ponytail had come loose at some point, and his hair was fanned out on the scarlet pillow, making for a lovely contrast. Neck arched, head thrown back, silver eyes watching him with a heady combination of lust and affection, usually pink lips now red and swollen because of Al's biting kisses. Scorpius looked breath-taking and Al knew if he didn't do something soon, he'd be coming before the Gryffindor.

Al reached down between them and fisted both their erections together, groaning at the tantalising pleasure this new action gave him. He could tell from the way Scorpius's body trembled from head to toe, and the soft, "Fucking _hell_." that his boyfriend liked the twist in events.

Al started jerking them off together, first hesitantly, then with quickly gained confidence as he watched Scorpius come apart under him.

"Unnh! Al! I-I need...Oh! God, I need—" He cried out Al's name then, thrusting up as he came hard. Al came with him, his orgasm so strong that he was still shaking from it a few minutes later.

"It's never been like that before." Scorpius mumbled dazedly, "Never ever. Fuck, Al."

"Really?" Al couldn't keep the pleased tone from his voice.

Scorpius let out a breathless laugh, "Really." He confirmed, turning to look into those green eyes, "You have never done this stuff with other guys, right?" He asked, trying to inject some light-heartedness in his voice and failing miserably.

Al frowned, "No, of course not. You know you're my first boyfriend. My first everything, really."

Scorpius grinned widely, "And you're my last." He promised, shifting closer to press his lips to the Slytherin's.

"Why did you ask though?" Al asked, confused.

Scorpius blushed, "Well, it's just, you're so _good_ at this!"

Al's lips twitched, "At what? Sex?"

Scorpius's eyes widened, "Sex. Oh fuck, if _this_ is so great, I think I might die when we actually have sex."

Al couldn't help but laugh at the concern in Scorpius's voice, "You won't die." He said, rolling his eyes. He paused then, considering something, "Fran said that when she walked in on you having sex with Lee, you were on top."

Scorpius groaned, "Why are we talking about _Lee_ now?"

Al didn't bother responding, he just levelled a look at the Gryffindor. After a few moments, Scorpius caved with a sigh, "Yes, I was top. Obviously. Who would bottom for Lee?"

"With...Smith?" Al grimaced as he mentioned the Hufflepuff.

Scorpius frowned, running his fingers through Al's messy hair, "I topped. Whenever I have a fairly long term arrangement with someone, I tend to top."

"You do bottom though." Al said thoughtfully.

"I do. I've done it a few times, with one-night stands who knew what they were doing. I enjoyed it." Scorpius turned Al's face towards himself, studying those guarded green eyes, "Where are you going with this, love?"

"I'm just wondering what it would be like for us. The roles keep changing between us, sometimes you take charge and sometimes I do. Isn't it supposed to be more of a fixed thing?" Al's brows furrowed in concern as he looked at his boyfriend. He was new to this whole thing, but from all that he'd read and heard of, every gay relationship had one dominant personality and one submissive one. Their relationship didn't fit the mould. Didn't that mean something would eventually go wrong?

Scorpius smiled softly, "Oh, Al." He wrapped his arms around the Slytherin's waist and pulled him closer, nudging Al's nose with his own, "Nothing is fixed. Sure, a lot of gay men have a strong preference for either topping or being a bottom, but there are quite a few who go either way. Like me. And if I'm being completely honest, I'd like to do it both ways with you. I'll be fine if you don't want to though."

Al processed this then nodded slowly, "No, I'd like that too." He met Scorpius's silver gaze, "I want you to top the first few times though."

"I can do that." Scorpius agreed readily, allowing curiosity to get the better of him as he asked, "Why though? Usually, when they have gay sex for the first time, guys tend to prefer topping."

Al looked mildly embarrassed as he answered, "You implied that it's more enjoyable for the person on the bottom if their partner knew what they were doing. The only way I could know what I was doing is if you taught me."

Scorpius let out a harsh breath, staring wide-eyed at his boyfriend. After long moments he finally kissed Al's temple and hugged him tightly, "You're going to be the death of me, you know that?"

Al just chuckled, wrapping his arms around Scorpius as well.

* * *

 **A looooong chapter :) And yes, there's going to be one more up today :D You will all be happy to know I've finished writing the story on my end. Only need to put it up now. I'll try to be regular with the updates. I know I'd hate waiting for them.**

 **Please do leave a review! I love hearing what you think.**

 **~FairyTailDreams**


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"Madam Puddifoot's?" Al asked, grimacing, "When you told me to leave the planning to you I assumed you had something more original in mind."

"O ye of little faith." Scorpius chided, "Stop complaining, Al. Don't you trust me?"

Al rolled his eyes, "I'm regretting the fact that I do."

Scorpius turned and pouted, "Come on, humour me. I've always wanted to come here with you."

Al's green eyes lit up with mischief and amusement, "You what?"

Scorpius blushed, "I've always wanted to come here with you, alright? I've come here with other guys, seen you walk past with your friends and then tried to pretend that it was you sitting across from me. Which was always extremely difficult given the fact that you could barely stand to _look_ at me for more than a minute leave alone actually talk to me." As he spoke, the colour faded from Scorpius's cheeks and a faraway look that spoke of sadness had entered his eyes. "I-I didn't think I'd ever get a chance with you."

"Scorpius." Al's voice was soft, but it immediately got the Gryffindor's attention because Al rarely said his full name. When grey eyes met green, Scorpius felt a rush of embarrassment, realising only then what he had said.

"Sorry." He said immediately, cheeks flushing with colour once more, "Merlin, I'm so sorry, Al. Just forget I said all that." He said, looking everywhere but at his boyfriend, "Uh, you don't want to go here right? That's fine, I hate it in there anyway. Shall we go to the Thr-"

"Scorpius." Al's voice cut through his panicked words, calm and firm, "Look at me."

Knowing he didn't truly have it in him to disobey Al, Scorpius looked at the Slytherin's face, inhaling sharply at the soft, warm emotion he saw there. He'd seen glimpses of it in the past few weeks, sure, but Al had never really allowed him to see more than that. Now he was. Scorpius couldn't help but reach out a hand to cup Al's cheek, leaning closer as if just to make sure the emotion in those lovely eyes was for him. Him, and no one else.

"I love you."

Al's voice rang in his mind and Scorpius felt as if he were flying; he didn't even need a broom. He tried to say something but all that came out was a whimper as he felt Al's arms go around him. He swallowed and felt himself trembling as he reached out to touch Al's lips with his fingers, "C-Could you...?"

Seeming to understand what he wanted, Al repeated himself, "I love you." He said, his lips moving against Scorpius's fingers, breath warming the tips, "I love you so much."

He didn't realise he was close to tears until a tear actually fell from the corner of his eye down his cheek. He sniffled once before launching himself onto Al, wrapping his legs around _his_ Slytherin's waist and his arms around his neck. He drew Al into a kiss that was exhilarating and languorous all at once. His fingers tangled in Al's hair as Al's hands moved under his bottom to help support his weight. A thought struck the Gryffindor mid-kiss and he abruptly pulled away, leaving Al a little disoriented and a lot irritated.

"What—?"

"I love you too." Scorpius said moving his thumbs over Al's cheekbones as he looked down at the only boy he'd ever really wanted, smiling softly.

Irritation fell away from Al's expression and amusement replaced it, "I know."

Too happy to be annoyed by his boyfriend's cockiness, Scorpius just went right back to kissing him. It was only ten minutes later that one of the waitresses at Madam Puddifoot's came out and asked them, blushing and stuttering as she did, whether they needed a table or not because they were blocking the entrance to the café.

At that point, Scorpius was so worked up that all he really wanted was to take Al up to their secret room and have his way with him. Al, though, had other ideas.

"Yeah, we'd like a table." Al said to the waitress, pressing a final, quick kiss to Scorpius's lips before letting his legs slide down to the ground, keeping a firm hold on the Gryffindor's waist in case his legs couldn't support his weight just yet.

"Wait." Scorpius protested weakly, "What?" He looked at Al pleadingly, but Al just smirked.

"You wanted Madam Puddifoot's, love. You're getting Madam Puddifoot's." Al told him, leading him inside the café behind the waitress, "Be happy, you actually won this round."

Scorpius winced in discomfort as he sat down. His tight jeans were doing nothing to help his rock hard erection. "Why doesn't it feel like I won?" He asked pitifully, looking across the booth at Al, "We can come to Hogsmeade next year. Come on." He urged, letting his foot slip up Al's calf, drawing a sharply inhaled breath from the other boy along with a reproachful look.

"No. As happy as I am that you seem to want me so badly, I've never been on a date before. That aside, it took me a long time to finally ask you out, or rather, tell you that we're going out. I'd really rather not skip out on this to go have sex." Al said, perusing the menu. It would have been hard for any other person to see it, but Scorpius could tell Al was just the slightest bit pissed off and offended by his suggestion.

He blinked, regaining his senses quickly. He had to stop forgetting that this was Al's first time doing everything. He pulled his foot back and reached for Al's hand across the table, squeezing it lightly, "I'm sorry."

Al looked up and studied his face for a moment, then shrugged his hand off with a sigh and a half-smile, "It isn't that I don't want you."

Scorpius grinned, "I know, Al. I understand. Besides, you have a point. Given how long it took you to ask me out on a date, we really shouldn't waste the day holed up in a room together." He said teasingly.

Al chuckled, "Fran was at her wits' end. She's been behind me to ask you to Hogsmeade since before my altercation with Smith in Charms."

Scorpius leaned back in his chair, raising a single brow at his boyfriend, "What took you so long then?"

To his surprise and utter delight, Al's cheeks flushed with colour, "It's just—" Al broke off nervously, his green eyes darting around the café before resting on Scorpius's face once more, "It was a bit nerve-wracking. To be the one to make the first move."

Scorpius's eyes lit with his surprise as he leaned forward to cup his boyfriend's cheek, "You didn't actually think I'd ever say 'no', did you?"

Al gave him a smirk then, "Of course not. You've made it clear on several occasions that you find it very difficult to say no to me." The smirk tempered into a sheepish smile, "I was just afraid of doing it wrong. Fran had all these ideas about different ways to ask you. She believed I needed to make a spectacle of the whole affair, but I just couldn't do it." Al let out a rueful chuckle, "I think I'm telling you all this to apologise somewhat for how I practically demanded you go out with me. You deserved more than that."

Scorpius felt his heart swell with joy and love, "I liked how you asked me. It was very _you_. And I love you, Al."

Al's lips curved into a beautiful smile as he leaned across the table to kiss his boyfriend warmly. If this was any indication of how dates went, he wouldn't mind going on more of them.

* * *

 **And that's the moment a lot of you were waiting for :)**

 **Read and review!**

 **~FairyTailDreams**


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I own only the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"I don't see what's the hurry." Al mumbled as he was pulled along towards the exit of their coach in the Hogwarts Express, "I can meet them when I come to stay at yours next week."

Scorpius frowned, slowing his gait and turning to study his boyfriend's pale face and wary eyes. A realisation struck him and warmth coursed through him as he stopped walking altogether and turned to face his Slytherin, "Al, are you nervous about meeting my parents?"

A rush of red coloured Al's cheeks as he tried his best to look indignant, "What?! No! Of course not!"

Scorpius chuckled, wrapping his arm around the boy he loved and pulling him into one of the empty compartments. He then brought Al closer so he could nuzzle his face in his Slytherin's neck, "I love you." He reminded the other boy softly.

"Yes, well, it's not you I'm worried about." Al mumbled, sounding hopelessly embarrassed.

Scorpius lifted his head and framed his boyfriend's red face with his hands, "I love you so they will too."

With Scorpius so close, Al finally let go of the guard he'd had up since leaving Hogwarts that morning, letting the Gryffindor see the fear in his eyes. "What if we were both wrong? What if you get along well with my family and I'm horrible with yours? It'll be one more place I don't belong and I—" A shudder went through Al's body as he shut his eyes tightly, "I don't want to make things more difficult for you."

"You are such a tosser, Al." Scorpius said sadly, running his fingers through the other boy's unruly black hair, "How long have you been worrying about this?"

Al grimaced, "Since the minute I agreed to spend part of the Christmas holidays at yours."

Scorpius's gaze hardened, "You're supposed to _tell_ me these things. I told you not to hide from me."

Al said nothing, only turned his face away with a slight air of defiance. But Scorpius saw through the defiance to the uncertain, insecure boy he was in love with and his eyes blazed with determination. He angled his boyfriend's face so grey eyes met green and he said in a low voice, "Al, listen to me carefully, alright? I've spent the better part of my life half in love with you and regardless of what _anyone else_ says, you loving me is the best thing that has ever happened to me. You're painfully gorgeous and smart and sexy as sin and I thank Merlin every day that you never came out in Hogwarts before we got together because I honestly don't know if you would have noticed me amidst your several admirers." Al opened his mouth to protest that, but Scorpius silenced him with a look before continuing. "Yes, there are some colossal idiots in this world who think like Smith, but Al, your family adores you. Your mum and dad would be devastated if they knew how you felt about your place in the family. So this has to be the last time I see you putting yourself down." Scorpius leaned forward to brush his lips against his stunned boyfriend's temple, "You are wonderful and incredibly strong. Don't forget that, love."

Al let the words wash over him once, then again and again, knowing he would never forget them. He could never forget them. Not when Scorpius had spoken each one so sincerely. He released a shaky breath and shifted so he was looking into his Gryffindor's eyes; brimming with tears and warm with love.

"I love you." He breathed, pulling Scorpius forward to kiss him with such force that he ended up knocking them both over so Al was flat on his back on one of the benches in the compartment. Scorpius hummed his approval as he grabbed fistfuls of Al's black leather jacket and pressed himself closer, deepening the kiss. When the Gryffindor finally broke off the kiss, Al felt a sense of security and peace stronger than anything he'd ever felt before. He tightened his hold on Scorpius's waist, "Thank you."

Scorpius sat up, shifting Al so he was astride his lap, leaning his forehead against the Slytherin's, "Just don't keep it to yourself next time, okay?"

"Hmm." Al smiled, pressing a light kiss to Scorpius's lips.

"They're over here!"

Both boys started as the compartment door was thrown open and both James and Lily clambered in.

"You are both in for it." James said, panting slightly, "Al, get off him!"

Still too bewildered to move, Al let himself be pulled bodily off of Scorpius and onto his feet. Scorpius stood as well, "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?!" Lily's cry was nearly shrill, making all three boys cringe, "You both have been missing for the past half hour. The train is about to leave and return to Hogwarts. Why are you still in here?!"

Scorpius and Al exchanged sheepish looks, "Well, actually-"

"Al!" Harry and Ginny burst into the compartment along with Draco and Astoria, matching expressions of panic on all four faces until they caught sight of their sons.

"Scorpius!" Astoria rushed to her son, pulling him into a tight hug, "Oh goodness, we were so worried! We knew you both had boarded the train, but no one saw you getting out. We were ready to go to the aurors when James suggested checking the train first."

Draco Malfoy studied his son's dishevelled appearance and his companion's mortified expression as he was fussed over by his parents. He rolled his eyes, shaking his head slightly. "Really boys, you couldn't wait until you were off the train?"

Both boys flushed red, their eyes darting to one another for a moment. Scorpius's lips curved in an encouraging smile as he held out his hand to the boy who had to be Albus Potter. Draco studied him, marvelling at how alike his father he was in every way but height. He seemed to have inherited the Weasley genes in that respect, standing as tall as Scorpius. Black hair, intelligent green eyes that were not hidden behind glasses, and sharp features made him quite an attractive young man. Draco could see why this boy had caught his son's eye. There was something in the aura that surrounded Albus Potter that drew people's eyes to him. Something subtle, but definitely present. The boy seemed to have the commanding presence and arrogant confidence that his father had always lacked.

Draco watched as that confidence wavered slightly when Albus linked his hands with Scorpius's and turned to face him and Astoria. The boy was nervous, and the thought made Draco want to smile. He didn't though.

"Father, Mother, this is Albus Potter, my boyfriend. Al, my parents." Scorpius introduced, squeezing Al's hand lightly.

Al allowed a smile to curve his lips as he held out his hand for Draco Malfoy to shake, "It's a pleasure to meet you both."

Draco let the boy's hand hang mid-air for a moment, noticing the way it trembled slightly, before sliding his hand into its grasp, shaking firmly. Despite the tremble, the boy's handshake was firm and strong. Good. He allowed himself to smile now, "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Albus. Scorpius's letters have been about little less but you for the past few months."

Astoria chuckled as her son's boyfriend blushed at her husband's words. Really, but he was gorgeous. Scorpius had chosen well. Her eyes flitted to her son, taking in the openly besotted look on his face as he watched Al, before she stepped forward to pull the boy into a hug, "I'm so happy to finally meet you." She stepped away from Albus, keeping her arms on the boy's shoulders, "We can't wait to have you at home."

Harry and Ginny watched their son's face become redder than they had ever seen it as he conversed with his boyfriend's parents and exchanged bemused smiles. This was a side of Al they hadn't seen in a long time.

The train's whistle sounded startling everyone in the compartment. Harry cleared his throat to get everyone's attention, "Maybe we should continue this outside?"

When they were on the platform, the Malfoys pulled their son into a hug, one at a time, "Well, you have fun at the Potters'. We'll see you in a week's time." Draco said, clapping his son on the back before turning to Al, "You too, Albus. We look forward to welcoming you into our home."

"Thank you, sir." Al grinned, feeling more relaxed now that the entire ordeal was over.

Scorpius laced his fingers through Al's as they walked toward the car with the rest of the Potter household. "That wasn't so bad, was it?"

Al chuckled, "No, it wasn't." He glanced toward his parents who had their backs to them and pressed a quick kiss to Scorpius's lips.

"You both are barking mad. Snogging on the train after it reached London." James muttered, shaking his head, "What if it had been Dad or Mr Malfoy who found you?"

Al paled at the thought, "Merlin, that would have been awful."

Scorpius snickered, "Oh, I don't know. I'm sure both our fathers know we snog."

Al narrowed his eyes at his boyfriend, "You are never going to snog me in front of our fathers. Or mothers. Or any member of the family really."

Scorpius's amusement fell away and astonishment took its place, "What? Al! You must be joking! You have like fifty people in your family!"

Al raised a single brow, "Do I look like I'm joking?" He asked seriously.

Scorpius groaned as James and Lily laughed. Harry and Ginny, who weren't walking quite so far ahead that they couldn't hear the whispered conversation behind them, grinned.

* * *

Harry raised a single brow as he turned to peruse his eldest son and his daughter, both of whom were hovering just outside the doorway of his study. "We're not about to kill them." He said dryly, "Go and unpack. Al and Scorpius will join you both shortly."

Lily nodded, disappearing up the stairs. After hesitating for a moment, James followed her. Ginny closed the study door, chuckling before turning to face the two teenagers standing nervously in the middle of the room.

"Harry wasn't lying, you know." She said, bemused, "I thought our letter made it clear that we approve of you both as a couple."

Al grimaced, "Why ask to speak to us alone then?"

Harry came to stand between both boys, throwing an arm around each of their shoulders, "Well, Al, this is the first time you've brought a boy home. We need to cover some ground rules. I've already had this talk with your brother, so it's your turn now. I hope to God I never need to have this talk with Lily."

Scorpius snorted, "Al and James echo your sentiments." He said, flashing Harry a grin.

Harry laughed, squeezing Al's shoulder, "Right, I meant to commend you for that Al. We haven't received one letter about indecent behaviour in public about Lily this year."

"Yet." Ginny said dryly, rolling her eyes.

Harry grimaced, and Scorpius marvelled at how much like Al he looked at that moment, "Yes well, I still count it as a minor victory."

"Dad, can you please just get on with your 'talk'? What ground rules?" Al asked suspiciously. James had mentioned nothing about this to him beforehand. He was going to kill him.

Harry cleared his throat, "Right. Well, first rule is obviously that you will not be sharing a room. Scorpius will stay with James, as he always has."

"What?!" Al scowled, "Why? We're both blokes, what does it matter?"

"You're both blokes who are dating." Ginny corrected, her brown eyes meeting her son's indignant gaze, "Don't think I don't know what blokes who date get up to, Al. I bought a book."

Al turned red with embarrassment, "Mum!"

Scorpius found himself torn between laughing and being completely mortified. The hilarity won out and he let out a short bark of laughter, earning a kick in the shins from his boyfriend. Al scowled at Scorpius then rolled his eyes, "Fine, that's rule one. What are the other rules?"

"We've got nothing against public displays of affection, but tone it down during family gatherings. That's the second rule."

"That's fair." Scorpius admitted, nodding.

"He'll be lucky if he gets any display of affection." Al quipped.

Scorpius groaned, "You're killing me, Al."

"Should have thought about it before you laughed."

Harry snorted in amusement, "I'd like to sum up our talk with the third rule, no sex under my roof."

Al smirked, "That must be a hard rule for you to follow, Dad."

"Ha ha. Wise ass." Harry rolled his eyes, "Let me rephrase, none of my kids are to have sex under my roof unless they are married. Preferably not even then." He looked at Al expectantly.

Al shrugged, "It shouldn't be an issue."

Harry blinked, "Oh." He exchanged looks with Ginny, "Is it just me or was this talk a lot harder with James?"

Ginny chuckled, "It's not just you." She moved forward and hugged first Al then Scorpius, "I'm so happy for you both. Really."

Al cleared his throat, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck, "Thanks Mum. You too, Dad. I-It—" He broke off, looking toward Scorpius who grinned at him, " _This_ means a lot to me. So thank you for being okay with it."

Harry and Ginny exchanged mildly surprised looks as they nodded. Both boys left the room then, waiting until they were outside before linking hands.

"Well."

"Well."

Harry looked to his wife, "He's in love with Scorpius."

Ginny grinned, "I was wondering if you'd notice."

"Do you think they'll be okay? This is just the beginning." He said worriedly.

Ginny wrapped her arm around Harry's waist and leaned into him, "As long as they stick together? I think they'll be fine."

Harry sighed, "I hope so." A slight smile curved his lips, "I like seeing Al happy."

"Me too."

* * *

 **And Draco Malfoy makes an appearance :) I really quite like him.**

 **So, what did you think of the 'meet the parents' chapter? Leave a review please!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I only own the storyline and the original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Al jolted awake. Blinking sleepily, he looked about his room wondering what on earth had woken him. A muttered curse and the sound of something hitting his trunk was all the warning he had before something large and heavy landed on him, knocking him flat on his back. He yelped as he fell, his eyes widening as he recognised the body on his.

"Scorpius?" He frowned, "What's wrong? What are you—mmmm." Al hummed against Scorpius's lips, answering the Gryffindor's enthusiasm with his own, until his thoughts caught up with him. He broke off the kiss, leaning his head back and drawing a harsh breath as Scorpius, undeterred by his boyfriend's actions, began kissing his way down Al's throat, one of his hands moving over the Slytherin's shirtless chest while the other pressed against the tent in his grey sweatpants.

"Merlin!" Al breathed, arching his neck unintentionally, allowing Scorpius to access more of his skin, "Fuck, Scor. What are you doing?" He groaned as Scorpius's hand slipped under the waistband of his sweats to wrap around him.

"You're driving me mad." Scorpius murmured, nipping at one of Al's nipples, earning a stunned gasp from his boyfriend. "It's been three days since we last kissed."

"I—ah!—I told you th-that we couldn't in front of my—unh—parents." Al said, his voice muffled as he turned to bury his head in his pillow, hoping it would help quieten the sounds he made as Scorpius did away with his resolve stroke by stroke.

Scorpius's hand suddenly left him and Al managed a disappointed whimper before wet heat enveloped him. He cried out loudly in surprise and pleasure, unable to keep his hips from jerking forward so more of his length was surrounded. Scorpius didn't pull away or protest, instead his head bobbed forward until every single inch of Al was in his mouth. Al raised his head to meet his boyfriend's mischievous grey gaze and he moaned, "Merlin, you're sexy as fuck." He breathed, "But there is no way I'm going to be able to keep my voice down if you do that."

Scorpius didn't reply, he just hummed his approval of Al's words, the vibrations of the sound making Al's eyes roll to the back of his head as it fell back onto his pillow. Scorpius used one hand to hold Al's hips down as he bobbed his head and worked his tongue expertly over his Slytherin's length, while his other hand moved up to Al's mouth. Two fingers pressed against Al's parted lips and Al greedily sucked them in moaning around them as they began fucking his mouth. He didn't even notice Scorpius's lips leaving his erection and moving up to his ear, "Just imagine, love, if my fingers were doing this to your ass instead of your mouth." Scorpius said hotly, licking the shell of his ear.

Al whimpered, the image and sensations making his body tighten with need and anticipation. Scorpius removed his fingers from Al's mouth, kissing him roughly. His desperation came through in the way he ravaged Al's senses and frotted against Al's erection. When his fingers pressed into Al's hole, breaching the ring, Al cried out against his mouth, his orgasm crashing down on him and Scorpius followed soon after, the expression of unadulterated ecstasy on Al's face bringing him over. Panting, Scorpius let himself sink down onto his boyfriend's body.

Al wrapped an arm around Scorpius as he fought to catch his breath. "What did I do to deserve that?" Al asked weakly, "Because whatever it was, I'll do it again and again. _Fuck._ "

Scorpius sat up slowly and took hold of the Slytherin's chin, angling his face so their eyes met; dazed green eyes meeting determined grey ones, "I want to make love to you, Al." Determination wavered and mixed with uncertainty, "I thought, with the way things were going, that maybe during the holidays we could..." His voice dragged off as a bright flush stained his cheeks, "But then you told your dad you agreed with the third rule, and you haven't touched me in three days and I just—"

Al cut off his babbling with a hard, punishing kiss, "You wanker." He said when he finally pulled away, "What exactly was I supposed to tell my father? That I couldn't agree with the third rule because I wanted to be fucked by my boyfriend? Are you off your rocker?"

Scorpius's brows furrowed, "I don't understand." He mumbled, thoroughly befuddled.

Al snorted, "I forget what a Gryffindor you are sometimes." He brought his hands up to frame Scorpius's face, "I lied, love. If you want to, we can have sex right now."

Scorpius blinked, his mouth slowly falling open, "You lied?! That was you lying?" His grey eyes grew wide as he scrambled to sit on his knees, straddling Al. "But I couldn't tell at all!"

Al smirked, "That is kind of the point of lying. No one is supposed to know."

"You _can't_ be that good at lying." Scorpius said seriously.

Al raised a single brow, "Why not?"

"Because, if you are that good then how am I ever going to know if you're lying to _me_?" Scorpius asked looking slightly distressed.

Al frowned, "What do you think I'm going to lie to you about?"

Scorpius was distracted enough by his new discovery that he didn't notice the almost dangerously low tone with which Al voiced his question. His response was immediate.

"Whether I look nice when we go out; whether I actually cook well; whether something is bothering you; whether you like my house and my family; whether—" Scorpius was stunned when he was suddenly pulled down and thoroughly kissed. He gasped when Al pulled away, drawing in a breath to make up for the ones stolen from him. "What was that for?"

"For being you." Al said, grinning fondly up at him, running a hand down the side of his face.

Bemused, Scorpius smiled slightly, "I love you." He said, feeling the emotion well up when he saw the way Al was looking up at him.

Al hummed in contentment as he pulled Scorpius down to lie beside him, curling into his body, "Tonight was different." Al said softly once he was completely ensconced in his Gryffindor's arms.

"Yes, well, I needed proof that you still wanted me." Scorpius said, chuckling slightly, "James got sick of my pacing and threw me out of the room. He told me not to come back until one of us had fucked the other because the sexual tension was driving him up the wall."

Al smiled, "That sounds like James. I would tell you how big of an idiot you are for ever thinking I didn't want you, but I'm tired."

Scorpius huffed in amusement, cleaning himself and Al with a quick spell before wrapping his arms around the Slytherin and anchoring him to his body, "Tired from doing what? Lazing around all day?"

"We did play quidditch in the evening." Al mumbled, burying his face in his boyfriend's clothed chest.

"Yes, that must have really worn you out, that half hour of flying on a broomstick." Scorpius drawled.

"You're being mean." Al said, his voice heavy with sleep.

Scorpius chuckled, "You know, we're breaking the first rule."

Al tucked his head in the crook of Scorpius's neck and pressed a kiss to the exposed skin there, making his boyfriend shiver, "I'm pretty sure my dad would count what we did tonight as breaking the third."

Scorpius tightened his arms around the boy he loved, listening to his breathing even out as he went to sleep. He lay there feeling utterly blissful for a while before finally falling asleep himself.

* * *

James was getting dressed when Scorpius finally let himself back into their room. His lips curved into a knowing smirk as brown eyes scanned Scorpius's rumpled clothes, mussed hair, swollen lips and the slight bruises forming along his neck.

"I thought you went over there to seduce him. Why do you look like the one who was seduced?" James asked, amused.

Scorpius's eyes twinkled with mischief as he pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it onto his makeshift bed to reveal more bruises scattered across his chest. "Well, I seduced him last night and he thanked me this morning."

James grimaced, "That's a hint more than I need to know about my baby brother's sex life."

"You asked." Scorpius pointed out, chuckling as he dressed for the day. He pulled a pair of black jeans over his boxers and donned grey turtleneck sweater over a new long-sleeved tee. "When are we supposed to be—"

"Boys! Lily! You have half hour for breakfast. We have to leave for the Burrow soon!" Ginny's voice called out clearly from downstairs.

Scorpius grinned, "Never mind." He looked over to James questioningly, "Ready to head down?"

"I am, but what's the bet your boyfriend isn't?" James said, rolling his eyes.

"Actually, Al was done changing when I left his room. He was going to go down ahead of us, but I…distracted him." That mischievous look was back in those grey eyes and James snorted.

"Again, more than I needed to know."

* * *

"Quick! Ginny! Look out the window! Do you see any flying pigs?" Harry asked urgently, setting down his paper.

Al rolled his eyes as Ginny laughed, "Ha ha. Very funny, Dad. Careful, your old age is showing."

"I thought it was quite witty." Harry said, scowling.

"It was, sweetheart." Ginny assured him before turning to her younger son, "How come you're already up and ready?"

Al's eyes took on a wicked gleam as he made himself a cup of coffee, "Oh, Scor woke me up."

Harry raised a single brow, "And he lives to tell the tale?"

Al managed to keep his tone casual as he responded with, "Well, I completely approved of his methods, so yes."

He was rewarded with the sound of his dad sputtering and his mum trying to calm him down. He turned around once the coffee machine was set up, leaning back against the counter to face his parents, his lips curved in a smirk.

"Al, we told you the rules." Harry said in his no-nonsense voice.

Al nodded, "You did. As I recall, rule number one said Scorpius had to stay with James. He did. He only dropped by in the morning. Early in the morning." Al's smirk widened as he watched his father's face turn red.

"B-But, rule number three!"

Al chuckled, "Oh, we didn't have sex. Or did we?" Al pretended to think, "No. I'm pretty sure we didn't."

"P-P-Pretty sure?!" Harry turned to his wife for help.

Ginny sighed, "Albus, stop antagonising your father, and Harry you need to calm down. Neither of them can get pregnant, let's just be grateful for that alright?"

Al snorted in amusement as he turned back to his coffee, "Really though, your rules were overall pretty silly. You know we go to a magical boarding school right? A school that has a room that provides students with anything they desire. Couples can be together every night and there isn't much anyone can do to stop us there."

"I should have known you'd get up to something like this." Harry muttered disgruntled, "You agreed to those rules far too quickly. James threw a tantrum but at least he respected the rules I set in this household."

Al snorted, "Do you really think James and Nicola slept alone last summer?"

"Of course he did." Harry said confidently, "I spelled the room so I'd know if more than one person slept there."

"You did." Al conceded, "The spell couldn't have told you who slept in that room though. James snuck Lily in and out every night."

"Al!" James cried, scandalised as he overheard the last part of the conversation.

"James Sirius Potter!" Harry thundered.

"Harry, come on." Ginny tried to placate him.

"No! Nicola _can_ get pregnant!"

Al watched the argument rally back and forth between both his parents and his elder brother as he sipped his coffee. He shifted forward slightly when Scorpius approached him, allowing his boyfriend to slip in behind him and wrap his arms around his waist. Scorpius pressed a quick kiss under Al's left ear, drawing a shiver from his Slytherin. "You started this?"

Al turned his head slightly to grin wickedly at his boyfriend, "I was bored."

Scorpius buried his face in Al's neck and laughed helplessly.

* * *

"You think he was serious when he said he wouldn't speak to you for the rest of the holiday?" Scorpius wondered.

Al shrugged, "I think he's overreacting. I mean, Mum even convinced Dad not to ground him. Besides it isn't like Dad isn't annoyed with me as well. James is being a big baby."

Scorpius gave his boyfriend a sidelong glance from where he lay in the snow beside him, "You know what I noticed?"

Al's eyes narrowed as he turned his head to meet Scorpius's gaze, "What?" He asked suspiciously.

Scorpius propped himself up on his elbow so he was looking down at the Slytherin, "Everyone was so busy wondering what your dad and James were fighting about, that they forgot to ask questions about us."

Al's expression turned thoughtful, "Oh. You're right. I wonder how I missed that."

Scorpius gathered two fistfuls of snow and flung them at his boyfriend as he sat up. Laughing, Al threw up his hands to keep the snow from touching his face, "Scor!"

"You missed nothing, you cheeky fucker. You planned that, didn't you?" Scorpius's tone was one of annoyed affection.

Al chuckled, "Maybe a little." He conceded, standing and shaking the snow off his jacket. He moved a hand up to his hair and made a face, "Aw, Scor, you got some in my hair!"

In a move that only he could get away with, Scorpius ran his fingers through Al's hair, "Your hair looks fine." He said dismissively before asking in a more serious voice, "Were you worried about how your family would react to seeing us together?"

Al's brows shot up, "What? No! No, of course not. Besides, Rose, Hugo, Louis, Lucy, Fred and Roxanne have all seen us in school. That isn't why I did this."

"Then why?" Scorpius asked, frowning slightly.

Al huffed out an exasperated breath, his cheeks turning red slowly from embarrassment, "It's silly."

Scorpius's lips curved in a small smile as he caught hold of his boyfriend's hands and drew him down to his lap, "Tell me."

Al met his gaze, green eyes uncertain, before sighing and nodding. "Oh, all right. I can't look at you when I say this though."

A giggle escaped Scorpius's lips, "I'll accept your condition. Go on then."

Burrowing his face in the crook of his boyfriend's neck, Al explained softly, "This is the first Christmas since I started Hogwarts that I haven't dreaded. I figured that, for once, I wouldn't feel out of place at the Burrow. But if everyone started in on the two of us about why we're dating and how we got together though, that would be ruined." Al paused, then with his voice no louder than a whisper he said, "I couldn't let that happen."

The two of them sat in silence for a long moment, just holding one another. Finally, Scorpius sighed, pulling back slightly to touch his lips to Al's forehead, "I love you, Al."

Al smiled, his warm, brilliant, just-for-Scorpius smile, "I love you too."

No more words were exchanged between them for the rest of the evening. Instead, they lay back on the snow, with their hands linked and their heads together, just basking in each other's presence until Ginny called them in for dinner.

* * *

 **I keep saying this, but God, thanks for the positive reviews guys :) I mentioned in the first chapter that this is my first slash fiction and my first fanfiction story. I'm overwhelmed by how much you all like it! Here's another LONG chapter.**

 **The story has only around three more chapters left. Then an epilogue. So enjoy! And as always, read and review!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

The next morning, when he got up, Al knew something was wrong. The insistent pecking at his window made him look towards it and what he saw made his eyes widen.

At least a dozen owls sat perched near his windowsill and he could see others flying down to the mail flap on the front door. A little wary, he got up off his bed and moved toward his window. His hands were on the latch to open it when his bedroom door slammed open, startling him.

"Don't open it, Al!"

It was Lily, her red hair in disarray, her eyes wild with worry and concern, "You didn't open it, did you?"

Al frowned, befuddled, "The window? No, I didn't. Not yet, anyway."

Lily sagged against his door, relief evident on her face, "Oh good. Mum is calling you down for breakfast."

Al didn't move, "Lils, what's going on?"

Lily's face flushed with colour, "I can't explain, Al. Just please go down. Scor is also waiting for you."

Al's eyes turned hard and his jaw tightened. In one quick movement, he unlatched his window. The birds flew in, feathers scattering everywhere as they tried to deliver their packages and leave as quickly as possible. Once they were all gone, Al sorted through the mail, growing more and more confused as he saw names of prominent wizards and witches in the community, most of whom he had never met.

"What in the wizarding world?" He mumbled, picking up one particular envelope. The name on it read neatly, 'Narcissa Malfoy'. He looked away from the envelope to Lily's pale face, "Why is Scorpius's grandmother writing me?"

Lily opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Al turned his attention back to the envelope in his hand, opening it so he could read the correspondence. Nothing could have prepared him for the words that attacked him.

 _Dear Mr Potter,_

 _It has come to my notice that you and my grandson have been spending a lot of time in one another's company. I also heard that for reasons I don't and will never understand, my son has not protested to this. Well, if he will not, then I shall in his stead._

 _Mr Potter, the Malfoy family is one that is proud of its roots and beginnings, this is true. But it is also a family that is moving towards change and a new public image. One my grandson has been hugely successful in creating thus far._

 _My son never saw the advantage of Scorpius being sorted into Gryffindor, but I am nothing if not an opportunist. With Slytherin having earned the reputation it had over the years, a new house seemed the perfect first step towards a new image for us Malfoys. This image was further strengthened when he befriended your family and began spending time at your home._

 _What you are doing, Mr Potter, is undoing every bit of good my grandson has achieved over the past sixteen years. It is bad enough that everyone in the wizarding world now knows he chose to keep company with you for a time, but that can be easily forgotten if you were to end this charade_ ** _now_** _. Stop letting Scorpius's name be dragged through mud along with yours. Stop making it so his future is ruined. Just stop. Our family has no need for a person such as you in it. Not when we are trying to recreate ourselves._

 _I hope you understand this is not personal. Even if you were a wonderful boy, it would be my duty to ensure you and your poisonous reputation stay far away from my family._

 _Let Scorpius go._

 _With regards,_

 _Narcissa Malfoy_

Al felt his knees begin to give way and steeled himself to remain upright. He walked slowly over to his bed and sank down onto it, staring at the letter all the while. The three pieces of parchment were quite literally his worst nightmare. Ever since he and Scorpius had begun dating, this was what he had worried about.

He let the pages drop to the floor and covered his face with his hands, taking in slow, deep breaths. Unbidden, Scorpius's words from almost a week ago came back to him.

 _"Al, listen to me carefully, alright? I've spent the better part of my life half in love with you and regardless of what anyone else says, you loving me is the best thing that has ever happened to me. You're painfully gorgeous and smart and sexy as sin and I thank Merlin every day that you never came out in Hogwarts before we got together because I honestly don't know if you would have noticed me amidst your several admirers."_

Breathing became a little easier then and the haze of hurt, confusion and anger cleared a bit.

 _"You are wonderful and incredibly strong. Don't forget that, love."_

Al opened his eyes, grateful for the fact that they were still dry. He looked to the doorway to find his sister still frozen there, noticing something he had missed before. In one hand, she held a crumpled part of that day's _Daily Prophet_.

"I need to see that." He said quietly, holding his hand out to her.

Wordlessly, she gave it to him. She hesitated for a moment then sighed, "I'm going to go get Scor."

Al nodded, that was probably a good idea. He didn't know when this calm façade of his would break, but when it did he'd need Scorpius to help him pick up the pieces. In the meanwhile, he scanned the article in the paper. It was exactly what he had expected after Narcissa Malfoy's letter. It gave a rather scathing summary of all that was said about him when he was first sorted into Slytherin and then proceeded to say that he now had even more power over the wizarding world because he had seduced the heir of the Malfoy family. The bit that cut Al the most though, was the end of the article. The paragraph that made it clear why Scorpius's grandmother had written to him in such a hurry.

 _Scorpius Malfoy, the first Gryffindor Malfoy, seemed to have a promising future ahead of him. A quidditch star, rumour has it he would have had his pick of professional teams in his seventh year. Well, it is doubtful that this is still the case. Albus Potter is known throughout Hogwarts as someone who keeps to himself, someone no one wants to make an enemy of. Justin Smith, an ex-boyfriend of Malfoy, told us he thought Potter already had his hooks deep in the Malfoy heir. 'Scorpius actually threatened me recently. He never would have done something like that before. It's all Potter's fault.' Smith said. Someone ought to tell Mr Malfoy that he needs to rethink his choice of partner if he wants to ensure he has some semblance of a good life once he's out of Hogwarts._

Al tossed the paper to the side, groaning as he raked his fingers through his already disheveled hair, " _Fuck_." He breathed, his body trembling slightly from his effort to hold in his emotions.

"Al."

He didn't look up, he couldn't. Instead he just asked in a slightly strained, husky voice, "Do you honestly still want me?"

"Yes." The answer was immediate and firm, "Merlin, yes. I love you." Scorpius's voice sounded as weighed down with emotion as his own and that made the knot in Al's gut loosen slightly.

He heard Scorpius begin to move towards him and he immediately shot out one hand, signalling for him to stop.

"Al." Scorpius sounded tortured now.

"I'm not going to walk away from us." Al assured him, still not looking at him instead looking at pile of envelopes on his study desk, "I know that isn't going to fix this. I just…I don't know _how_ to fix this. Not when I'm the problem."

"You are _not_ a problem." Scorpius said fiercely.

Al let out a bitter chuckle, "Did Lily tell you that your grandmother wrote to me?"

"No." Scorpius sounded wary now, "What did she say?"

"You should read for yourself." Al said, picking up the letter he had dropped and holding it out to the Gryffindor, finally looking him in the eye.

Scorpius's grey eyes searched his face for a long moment before he nodded, stepping forward to take the letter. He came to sit across from Al on the bed, far enough away so they still didn't touch, and then began to read.

Al watched his face as emotions flew across it. Surprise, astonishment, disbelief, then anger. Once he was done reading, Scorpius calmly drew out his wand, muttering a spell so the parchment lit up in flame and became a pile of ash on Al's bedroom floor. He turned to Al then, grey eyes filled with pain, "I'm sorry."

Al's eyebrows drew together in confusion, but he said nothing. He only studied Scorpius's face. "She isn't wrong, you know. I'm already making things difficult for you. Maybe you don't care now, but two years of this, _ten_ years of this? You're bound to get sick of it. If there was ever a time to walk away, Scorpius, it would be now."

"I'm _not_ going to walk away!" Scorpius cried, exasperated, reaching for Al, "I just—" He stopped himself short, holding Al's gaze, " _Please_. Let me touch you."

Al hesitated for a moment before moving forward and touching his lips to the corner of Scorpius's mouth. The Gryffindor drew in a sharp breath and grabbed his boyfriend's face, holding him still and then proceeding to kiss him senseless. Al whimpered, melting into Scorpius's demanding kisses, allowing himself to be pushed back onto the bed with his boyfriend's comfortable weight on top of him.

Scorpius seemed to have one goal. To possess. He stole Al's breath from him and then continued on his way to mark his territory. His intent was clear; he wanted everyone including Al to know that the Slytherin belonged to him. Nothing anyone said could change that.

Al drew in a breath when Scorpius's lips, teeth and tongue finally left his mouth. They made their journey along his jaw and then down his neck; Al keened softly as Scorpius bit into a particularly sensitive part of his neck. The Gryffindor's hands in the mean time pulled Al's shirt off him and tossed it across the room, before moving to finger his nipples and slide down his treasure trail.

"Scor." Al breathed, arching up off the bed as Scorpius's lips closed around one of his nipples.

"I'm getting fucking sick of making the same point again and again." Scorpius said, his voice like silk, an almost sinister edge to it, "You're _mine_."

When Scorpius made to pull off his boyfriend's boxers, Al resisted. "What now?" Scorpius muttered, his eyes narrowed and glinting dangerously as they met Al's dazed green gaze.

"Door. Shut the fucking door." Al managed in between breaths.

A wicked grin curved Scorpius's lips as he had the door shut and lock itself with a flick of his wand. He then threw the wand aside dived right back into what he had been doing before. Al's boxers winded up on the floor near the wand. Scorpius then continued on his journey, kissing, nipping and biting the insides of Al's thighs before slowly moving upward, parting Al's legs as he went.

"Scor?"

The question in his boyfriend's tone and the waver in his voice was what made Scorpius look up to meet his gaze. He smirked, before pushing Al's legs further apart, mouthing the two round balls below Al's stiff erection. Al, for his part, moaned loudly, his doubt, hesitation and confusion gone. He enjoyed the way Scorpius worshipped his body, basking in the now familiar, overwhelming sensations. And that's when Scorpius did something different.

Al's eyes shot open as his breath left him in a short gasp, "Scor…what?"

Scorpius didn't respond though, instead, he pried Al's cheeks further apart and speared him with his tongue drawing a shudder from his boyfriend. He continued his assault until Al was desperate and panting, his hands fisting his sheets. "OhMerlinOhMerlinOhMerlin! Fuck!" He whimpered, arching up into his boyfriend's ministrations, "Scor, please. Now. I want you now."

Scorpius lifted his head now, sliding up his boyfriend's body to kiss him, allowing Al to taste himself. Al broke the kiss, his hands tugging urgently at Scorpius's clothes, "You're still dressed!" He whined, frustrated.

Scorpius chuckled, "Patience."

"My parents could decide to come up at any minute." Al reminded him, satisfied to lie still now that Scorpius was doing away with his clothing.

Scorpius laughed outright, shucking his jeans and boxers off and to the side, "Do you really think I'd have the guts to fuck you with your parents downstairs and awake?"

Al blinked, "They're not home?"

Scorpius's eyes narrowed, "I'm doing something wrong if you're actually able to think about your parents whereabouts right now." He pressed his fingers to Al's mouth, and the question that had been asked was forgotten for the time being. When Scorpius finally pressed his fingers to Al's wet entrance, Al was more than ready. The pain startled him, making his erection flag, but he assured Scorpius he was fine and focused on the feeling of being almost too full. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't unpleasant either.

A second finger, then a third entered him, and as the Gryffindor moved them about, stretching him, Scorpius touched a spot that made Al gasp and arch to impale himself further. Scorpius noticed his reaction and a wicked grin curved his lips. From that moment, with every stretch Scorpius touched that spot and in minutes he had Al a quivering, writhing mess of want and need.

"Please." Al begged, not even ashamed of himself, "Please, please, please."

"Please what?" Scorpius asked, golden hair loose, grey eyes focused on his boyfriend.

Al lifted one hand to move some of the golden hair behind Scorpius's right ear, fingering the snake earring when he did, "Please fuck me."

Scorpius's breath left him and it took him a moment to start breathing again. Slowly, he pressed against Al's entrance, and after a token resistance, he slipped in. He closed his eyes as he felt the tight, hot channel close around his erection inch by inch. He watched Al's face, seeing some pain reflected in his expression, but mostly awe. He pushed the last inch in and aimed for Al's prostrate, drawing a whimper from his boyfriend. He waited, completely inside Al, marvelling that his dream had actually become a reality. Al was his, wholly and completely. When Al's breathing evened out, he began to move.

What started out as a slow, measured movement quickly became frenzied activity. Scorpius hooked Al's legs on his shoulders and began to move faster and thrust harder. Al, under him, wore an expression of pure ecstasy, keening Scorpius's name as he begged for more. Neither of them lasted very long. Hell, Scorpius was surprised he had even lasted longer than Al, though not by much. He had wanted Al so much and for so long!

Al tried to catch his breath, wincing slightly as Scorpius pulled out and moved to lie on his side. The sense of belonging he had felt when Scorpius was inside him was indescribable. He'd known at that moment that there was nothing _wrong_ about him and Scorpius. No, everything about them was right. So fucking _right_.

Al let that thought sink in for a moment and then said, "I'm not going to ask you if you want to walk away again."

Scorpius chuckled, wrapping an arm around him and snuggling close, not minding the mess they had made of one another. "That's good. It was starting to annoy me."

Al's smile was blinding as he turned to face his lover but it soon tempered into something more reserved and guarded, "I can't imagine my life without you anymore. Just the thought…it hurts."

Scorpius tightened his grip on his boyfriend, "You don't have to, love. I'm here. I'm always going to be."

They lay in one another's arms for a while, silence reigning, until Al asked in a confused voice, "Where _are_ my parents?"

Scorpius weighed his words then spoke carefully, "They were furious this morning when they saw the article. Your dad disapparated almost immediately to go to the Ministry and your mum went into her office to see if she could 'find the bitch who wrote the article and burn her at the stake'. Her words, not mine."

Al couldn't help a chuckle, "They're pretty amazing parents." He said, fondly.

"They are." Scorpius agreed.

Silence fell between them once more, and this time Scorpius broke it.

"My father sent me a letter this morning, after seeing the Prophet."

Al made to move away from Scorpius, but the Gryffindor held fast, tangling his legs with the Slytherin's. He rested his forehead against Al's and held his gaze; "Father said that if I dumped you over this ridiculous article, I was not a son he believed he could be proud of. He said he had quite liked you when he met you on the train, and if I wasn't planning on still bringing you home next week, to not bother coming home this year at all."

Al froze, eyes widening and filling with tears at hearing Draco Malfoy's words to Scorpius. Embarrassed, but profoundly relieved, he sniffed, fighting back his tears, "I-I didn't think I could still visit your house." He admitted in a small, trembling voice.

Scorpius sighed, "Oh, Al. I love you. I love you so much."

Al wrapped himself around the Gryffindor and held tight, drawing whatever comfort he could from the close proximity for as long as he could have it. His parents would be home soon so they would eventually have to move, but not that moment. Not that moment.

* * *

Al stared at the half-drunk glass of milk in front of him, deep in thought. He had not been able to sleep; not even with Scorpius curled up around him, holding him close. There were too many thoughts running through his mind. Too many decisions he needed to make. As soon as he had been sure his Gryffindor was fast asleep, he had extracted himself from his arms and come down to the kitchen.

"Al?" The light flickered on in the room and Al heard his father come up behind him, "You okay?"

Al considered his father's question thoughtfully, then slowly shook his head. "When you told me, six years ago, that what house I belonged to didn't matter to you and shouldn't matter to me, you didn't realise how much it would matter to the rest of the wizarding world, did you?"

Harry sighed heavily, pulling a chair and sitting beside his son, his head in his hands. "This is all my fault."

Al looked to his father in stunned surprise, "What? Dad, no! Of course not!"

"Yes. Yes it is." Harry said bitterly, "It was my fault for ever thinking my life was my own. That my children would not suffer for having me as a father."

Al, in a rare show of emotion, threw his arms around Harry Potter, hugging him tight, "Don't say that, Dad. You are the greatest father I could have ever had. James, Lily and I don't usually agree on anything but we all agree on that. It isn't your fault that people are so bloody nosy."

Harry gave a wet laugh, wrapping his arms around his son, "I'm sorry, Al. I'm so sorry they are printing such horrible things about you."

Al chuckled, pulling away slightly to show Harry his eyes were bright with tears as well, "I know, Dad. But like I said, it's not your fault. It's no one's fault."

Harry nodded, pulling away and wiping his tears away, "What are you going to do about it?"

Al paused in his action of bringing the glass of milk to his lips, and cocked an eyebrow, "What makes you think I'm going to do anything?"

Harry snorted, "Al, I've learnt to recognise your mischief-making face. You might have fooled Scorpius into thinking you were only worried about your stay at Malfoy Manor, but I know better. What are you planning?"

A small smile curved the Slytherin Potter's lips as he regarded his father thoughtfully, "Will you help me?"

"In whatever way I can." Harry promised.

Al nodded, his grin full-blown now, "I was thinking…"

* * *

 **A long, long chapter. I hope you enjoyed it :)**

 **Leave a review please! I love hearing what you all think!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

Scorpius entered Al's room in Malfoy Manor just in time to see him send his black owl out with yet another letter. He pursed his lips unhappily. Every day since that morning of the article, Al had been fairly obsessed with his correspondence. Whenever Scorpius questioned him about it, Al merely gave him a mysterious smile and said if all went well, Scorpius would know soon. Whatever that meant.

He cleared his throat, making Al straighten and turn away from the window. His Slytherin had a sheepish grin on his face, as though he had been caught doing something he shouldn't. Scorpius sighed and crossed the distance between them, wrapping his arms around Al and pulling him close, "I can lend you an owl, you know. I'm sure Shade could use some rest."

Al's eyes lit with amusement and his brows rose, "No interrogation this time?"

Scorpius nestled his face in his lover's neck, "You forget I come from a family of Slytherins. I know how much your secrecy means to you. I doubt you will tell me anything before you're good and ready. I've decided not to waste effort on trying to pry your secrets from you."

Al chuckled, his arms going around Scorpius as he buried his face in that fragrant golden hair. He sniffed deeply then pressed his lips to his boyfriend's skin, kissing and biting and sucking his way along the curve of the Gryffindor's neck and down the skin revealed by his now open shirt. "How long has it been since we've done this?" He murmured as his fingers nimbly worked on Scorpius's belt and buttons.

"Too fucking long." Scorpius groaned, allowing his hips to fall back to rest on the writing desk Al had been using moments ago, his hands clutching at Al's unruly black hair as the hot wet suction of a mouth surrounded his erection.

Al loved the power he felt when he had Scorpius in his mouth. The way his boyfriend surrendered to him, gave himself to him so whole-heartedly, so trustingly, turned him on like nothing else could. As he brought Scorpius to a loud, shuddering climax he felt himself harden to a point where it was almost painful. Rising quickly, he turned Scorpius so he was bent over the table and undid his pants, letting them fall to the floor and stepping out of them.

"Al?" Scorpius was breathless after his orgasm and sounded confused, but not afraid. He was simply curious as to where Al was going with this.

Al positioned himself between Scorpius's legs, "Bring your legs together." He said roughly, bending over so his breath fanned the side of Scorpius's face.

Whimpering at the gruff, sexy-as-fuck demand, Scorpius did as he was told, moaning as he felt his legs close around Al's long, hot length. A shuddering breath left him as Al began to move, in and out of the sheath he had created for him. Scorpius felt himself grow hard again against all odds, and whined at the sensations he felt as Al's cock pressed against his own time and time again. "Fuck. Al. I wish you were inside me." He keened, throwing his head back onto Al's shoulder, rocking into the each thrust. Al chuckled at his words, and before Scorpius realised what he was doing, he felt a finger circle his hypersensitive opening.

Crying out in surprise and pleasure, he came a second time, slumping against the table as he did. He felt Al follow soon after him, shooting on him so they were one big, sticky mess.

Both of them were silent for a while, catching their breath, then Al spoke up, still bent over his boyfriend, "Think your parents heard us?"

Scorpius snorted, turning his head so he could kiss his Slytherin soundly. "It would serve them right if they did. They've been using any means possible to keep us from having time alone for the past four days."

Al straightened and pulled away, allowing Scorpius to do the same and turn to him before pressing up against him once more, "I can't say I mind the methods they've been using. I mean, I met a vampire, Scor!"

Scorpius rolled his eyes even as his lips curved in an indulgent smile, "I should be offended that you'd rather have had the experience than spent time with me."

Al grinned cheekily, "I have the rest of my life to spend time with you. How often do you think I'll get the chance to meet a vampire?"

"If you actually take my father up on his offer? Very often." Scorpius said, wrapping his hands around Al's neck and bringing their foreheads together, sensing that the gesture was needed for the conversation ahead.

Al searched his grey eyes then sighed, "Did you ask him to do that?"

Scorpius kissed Al lightly, "Sweetheart, my father would have never agreed to offer you a job at his apothecary just because I asked. He's spoken to Slughorn and knows your grades in Potions. Besides, he's been talking about taking on an apprentice for years. He's just never found anyone he wanted to spend that much time around."

"How did you know then?" Al asked, turning Scorpius's words around in his mind.

"He asked me to his study a while ago and told me. He said he thought you might need some convincing. He said he wasn't about to let the only level-headed aspiring Potions Master he had met to get away from him." Scorpius chuckled at the shocked expression on Al's face, "What? You don't believe me?"

"You wouldn't lie about something like this." Al managed, stepping away from Scorpius and moving to sit on his bed. "I need to think about this, Scor."

Scorpius nodded, understanding. "We have a whole year left before we are done with Hogwarts, Al. Take your time. I just wanted to make sure you knew Father was serious about his offer."

Al nodded, giving his boyfriend a small smile. His green eyes raked over Scorpius's mussed appearance and his smile widened to one of pure satisfaction. He sighed wistfully, "I'm guessing you won't be able to sneak into my room tonight either?"

Scorpius laughed, kicking off his pants and shrugging off his shirt before going to Al. "My father is far less trusting than yours. He'll have both our rooms warded in the night." He bent forward so Al had to fall back onto the bed with Scorpius looming over him, "There's nothing stopping us right now though."

Al laughed, wrapping his arms around his Gryffindor and pulling him forward.

* * *

Draco Malfoy watched his son fiddle restlessly with his tie as he complained to his partner. Draco considered them thoughtfully then nodded to himself. Yes, 'partner' would be the correct term. Somehow 'boyfriend' seemed too insignificant a word to describe the relationship between the two young men.

Ever since Scorpius had come out to them all those years ago, Draco had worried about his future. He did it in the privacy of his own mind, but he did worry. During the past week though, watching Scorpius with Al, bit by bit his worry had disappeared. Al loved Scorpius, he saw, as much if not more than Draco and Astoria did. And really, what more could a father want for his son?

Tonight, New Years Eve, the Malfoy family hosted its annual Eve Ball at Malfoy Manor. Invitations had been sent out weeks in advance as usual, and as usual, Scorpius had made plans to be in Godric's Hollow with the Potters for the evening. In fact, he would be there at that moment, if Albus had not coaxed him into attending the party. Draco smirked to himself, he knew he had gone below the belt, turning to Al for support against his son but he firmly believed Scorpius and Al needed to be here tonight to face their demons. Besides, Al had confessed to having his own reasons for wanting to be at the party.

"Stop fidgeting!" Al's reproach floated to Draco's ears as the couple walked towards him, "I only just fixed it properly. If you make a mess of it once more, I won't help you."

"Al, please, I hate this! Can't we go to your place? We really don't need to be here." Scorpius whined for what Draco knew was the hundredth time.

"No." Al said firmly, "You know your father is right. We should be here presenting a united front with your family. If you want to stay with me, this is something we have to do."

The pair came to a stop close to where Draco stood, seemingly not aware of him. Scorpius put his arms around the Slytherin Potter and pulled him close, "I don't want you to get hurt."

Al's face softened as his lips curved in a small smile, one hand lifting to caress his cheek, "I can hold my own, Scor."

Scorpius tilted his face to lean into his partner's touch, "Not what I mean."

Al sighed, "I know."

Draco noted the way his son's hold tightened around the boy he loved, "If Smith has the balls to show up tonight, I'm going to kill him."

Al's expression grew hard and unforgiving but he shook his head, "If Smith shows up tonight, you will ignore him, love." It wasn't a request.

"What?! No!" Scorpius shook his head vehemently, pulling away slightly from Al, "I warned him, Al. He isn't going to get away with insulting you!"

"You are going to ignore him, Scor. I'm not arguing with you." Both boys stood apart from one another now, though still angled towards each other. "Think of it this way, your grandmother is going to be here too. Are you planning on duelling her as well? And for what? My _honour_?" The Slytherin's tone had an edge that warned Draco's Gryffindor son to think before responding.

Scorpius tugged on the end of his ponytail, a sign of extreme frustration, his silver eyes flashing with anger and irritation, "Do you really expect me to stand here and do _nothing_?! Would you, if you were in my place?"

"Yes, I would." Al retorted, folding his arms across his chest, green eyes cool as he regarded his partner, "Those people don't deserve my attention, be it good or bad."

Scorpius frowned, clearly unhappy with the logic of Al's answer.

"Spoken like a true Slytherin." Draco said, a hint of pride in his voice.

Both boys turned to him; Al looking surprised and Scorpius annoyed.

"How long have you been standing there eavesdropping?" His son asked, arching a single brow.

"If you wanted your conversation to be private, you ought to pay better attention to your surroundings." Draco said simply, smirking. "I agree with Albus. From what I've observed of Zachariah Smith's son, he's as much of an attention-seeker as his father. If you ignore him, you will infuriate him and snub him all at once."

Scorpius scowled looking from his father to partner and back, "You two agree with one another far too often for my liking."

Draco grinned at Al who chuckled in response, "We Slytherins stand up for one another. Right, Albus?"

"Right, Mr Malfoy."

Draco put an arm around his son's shoulder, "Be on your best behaviour tonight." He said sternly dropping his voice so only Scorpius could hear him as he continued, "Remember who was blamed the last time you lost your temper with someone."

Scorpius stiffened then nodded, grudgingly. "Best behaviour." He agreed, but not before shooting a smug Al a glower, "I'm only doing this because I love you."

Al laughed, "I know, love."

* * *

 **A little late with the update - I know. I'm sorry. Hope it was worth the wait though :)**

 **Leave a review please!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

"You and your stupid ideas." Scorpius muttered, swaying on the dance floor with his arms around his boyfriend.

"I know you love dancing, so that can't be why you're whining now." Al pretended to think for a moment, his lips twitching as he fought a smile, "Is it that you don't like dancing with me?"

Silver eyes flashed dangerously as Scorpius dipped his head so his mouth was at Al's ear, inappropriately close, "You know I love the way you move, Al." His husky voice and devilish smirk hinted at what he was referring to, and despite himself, Al felt his cheeks flush with colour.

"Behave." He scolded half-heartedly, his eyes darting around the room.

The two of them had been the centre of attention for most of the evening, which they had expected. They had also expected the disapproving looks and the snubs some of the elder members of the wizarding high society gave them. What they hadn't expected was the support of the majority of the younger generations. There had been several people their parents' age and below who had come up to them and wished them well. People who had expressed their disapproval of the article printed in the Daily Prophet. People who had met Al in passing as he grew up with his parents and siblings, who told him how they didn't believe a word of what was written. People who told him to keep his chin up, people who told him that they were on his side. Al hadn't realised he needed the existence of such people, but he did. Suddenly, breathing seemed to become a lot easier.

Scorpius's arms, which were around his shoulder, squeezed him slightly, making him aware that he had become lost in his thoughts. His beautiful Gryffindor grinned at him when he met his gaze and Al couldn't help grinning back.

The song ended and both boys bowed to one another before holding hands and leaving the dance floor. Once out on the terrace, Al dropped Scorpius's hand and wrapped an arm around his waist instead, pulling him close. He turned his head so his nose was buried in his lover's pale golden hair, "This wasn't a stupid idea." He murmured, bringing his other arm up so he was hugging Scorpius.

The Gryffindor smiled, that brilliantly warm, loving look entering his grey eyes as he leaned into Al's caress, "Not entirely stupid." Scorpius admitted, humming contentedly as they stood on the terrace looking out at the moonlit garden.

"Mr Potter?"

Scorpius frowned as Al dropped his arms and turned in the direction of the voice. To his observant eye, his boyfriend seemed suddenly anxious. "Mr Daniels?"

The elderly gentleman with shrewd, intelligent blue eyes smiled, "I wasn't entirely certain it was you in this light. You look just like your father."

Al smiled, hoping his nerves were well hidden, "I am told that often, sir. Have you met Scorpius Malfoy? He's my partner."

Jonathan Daniels turned his attention to the other young man on the terrace. He was tall and lean, his black tuxedo cut perfectly to compliment his height and frame. Long white blonde hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, throwing the striking face into sharp relief. On anyone else, the effect might have been harsh, but it made Scorpius Malfoy look ethereal. Smiling inwardly, Jonathan held out his hand for Scorpius to shake, "It's nice to finally meet you, Mr Malfoy."

Scorpius shook his hand looking slightly confused, "Finally?" He asked, shooting Al a questioning look.

Daniels watched Albus Potter steel himself and take a deep breath, realising in that moment that Scorpius had no idea what his partner had been orchestrating.

"Scor, Mr Daniels is the Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports in the Ministry of Magic."

Scorpius's mouth dropped open and his grey eyes grew wide as he looked from Daniels to his partner and back, "O-Oh! Good evening, sir! I didn't realise you were going to be attending tonight."

"Well, Mr Potter here invited me." Daniels said, blue eyes twinkling as he smiled, "You are a lucky man, Mr Malfoy, to have someone who loves you so devotedly."

Al's cheeks flushed with colour as Scorpius looked to him, befuddled. "Thank you, Mr Daniels. You're right, I am very lucky to have Al, but I'm afraid I'm a little confused." Grey eyes met green, "Al, what is going on?"

Al opened his mouth to explain but no words came out. He swallowed nervously, but didn't try again immediately. Daniels put his hand on the Slytherin's shoulder, "May I, Mr Potter?"

Al nodded, relieved. Words were suddenly very difficult for him.

"Did you know, Mr Malfoy, that there while there have been rules instated in the International Quidditch League against discrimination on the basis of sex, race and birth there has been no rule against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation? Mr Potter wrote to us a week ago pointing out the discrepancy. He also attached a copy of an article from the Daily Prophet, enquiring if it were indeed possible that quidditch teams would decide not to recruit a player because of who he or she loved."

Al watched as Scorpius inhaled sharply and grey eyes riveted on his face, quickly filling with tears. "Al." He breathed, trembling with emotion.

Al took a deep breath and continued where the Ministry official had left off. "It took a lot of back and forth, but as of today a new rule has been instated against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. That aside, every team in the British and Irish Quidditch Leagues have said they would never decide against recruiting a player because of who he or she loves. Several of them mentioned already keeping an eye on you because you are such a brilliant player. You're going to have your pick of teams, Scor." He managed a small, tremulous smile before saying in a whisper, "I didn't ruin anything."

Scorpius let out a noise that seemed torn between a growl and a whimper as he launched himself at Al, wrapping his arms and legs around his Slytherin as his hands cradled Al's tear-streaked face. "You could never have ruined anything. Nothing, none of this, is your fault. I love you." A shuddering breath left Scorpius, "Oh, I love you so much."

Al laughed through his tears, kissing Scorpius lightly on his lips, pulling away when the Gryffindor tried to deepen the kiss. He ignored his boyfriend's annoyance and looked over his shoulder to Jonathan Daniels, "Thank you."

Blue eyes twinkled as the man smiled, "You are very welcome, Mr Potter. Happy New Year to you both."

"Happy New Year, Mr Daniels." Scorpius grinned, not bothering to unwrap himself from Al. He was happy where he was.

Once the elderly gentleman had disappeared, Scorpius looked down at his boyfriend, that soft, warm look in his eyes, "I can't believe you did that." He murmured, lowering his face so his forehead rested against Al's.

"Dad helped." Al admitted, nuzzling Scorpius's cheek, "He took my letter straight to Daniels so I didn't have to waste time trying to get in touch with him."

"You know you didn't have to do all this." Scorpius whispered, his fingers tugging on the ends of Al's unruly hair at the back of his neck. "I love you and I always will. Fuck what anyone else thinks."

Al smiled, touching his lips to Scorpius's in a soft kiss, "I wonder why your grandmother never showed up." He mused, a knowing glint in his green eyes.

Scorpius's grip tightened around him as he scowled, "What does that have to do with anything?"

Al smirked, "You protect me in your way, I'll protect you in mine. I know I didn't have to do anything. I wanted to. I couldn't bear it if you were unhappy, and you would have been if you couldn't play quidditch."

Scorpius shook his head, "Disappointed, maybe. But never unhappy. If I have you, I don't need anything else to be happy. That's the simple truth, Al. You are my happiness."

Al slowly let Scorpius's feet touch the ground and leaned into him, hiding his face in his neck. "You are such a sap." He mumbled. The wetness Scorpius felt against his neck made him chuckle and gather Al more tightly into his embrace, "Yes, I am. I'm _your_ sap."

To which Al responded by burrowing deeper into him, making them seem less like two people and more like one.

* * *

Scorpius watched his boyfriend sleep peacefully, his bare chest rising and falling with every breath. His fingers stroked the line of Al's sternum down to his subtly defined abs, twirling around his belly button before travelling back up his chest. He felt a rush of gratitude towards his parents for letting Al sleep in his room that night. He didn't think he could be apart from him after the night they had had.

Al had been so emotionally drained after their conversation with Daniels that he had spent the rest of the evening at Scorpius's side, some part of him always touching his lover, as if for support. After an hour or so of this, Scorpius had excused himself and Al from the party, practically carrying his boyfriend up to his room and his bed. Al had let Scorpius undress him and then given him a soft kiss before curling up and going to sleep.

Al was leaving the next day to go back to Godric's Hollow. He was spending the few remaining days of vacation with his family, so the next time Scorpius would see him would be on Platform 9 and 3/4. The thought of being separated, even for only a few days, sent a surge of desire through Scorpius. He wanted to make the most of their time together. He wanted something that would remind him of his connection to Al for the next three days.

With that thought in mind, he set about waking Al up in the best way he knew how. Al's startled gasp and needy moan were music to his ears as he sucked on the now hard length. He used his hands to fondle the ball sacs as he worked his tongue over, under and around his boyfriend's erection. When he thought he'd made it wet enough, he kissed his way up the length of Al's body until his lips were at Al's ear.

"Fuck me." He breathed, sucking on Al's lobe, drawing a loud moan from the Slytherin. "Make it so I can feel you inside me for days."

In an instant, he was on his back with Al hovering over him, looking down at him with intense dark green eyes. "Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't." Scorpius promised, arching up so he was pressed against Al, "I want you inside me, Al. Please."

Al looked down at him, golden hair in disarray, silver eyes blown wide, cheeks flushed with colour and groaned softly. "You're so fucking sexy." He murmured before bending down to kiss him. He was taking his time, kissing, licking and biting his way down Scorpius's neck, when a hand tightened in his hair and jerked his head up to meet that grey, now desperate, gaze.

"Now." He begged, his hand reaching down to guide Al to his entrance, but Al stopped him, eyes wide. "What are you doing? You aren't prepared and we haven't used lube yet. Do you have any here?" He made to get off Scorpius to go look but the Gryffindor held him in place.

"I want to _feel_ you for days, Al. No lube. No preparation. Please."

Al growled low in his throat, holding both of Scorpius's wrists above his head with one hand as the other reached for his wand to _accio_ a bottle of oil Scorpius had sitting on his bedside table.

"I am _not_ going to hurt you. I made that clear, didn't I? Now shut up and be patient. I'm going to do this my way." He tightened his hold on Scorpius's wrists, pushing them further up, "Understand?"

The noise Scorpius made could only be described as keening. Al took that for agreement and let go of his lover's wrists, uncapping the bottle of oil and drizzling some on his fingers. He pushed one finger into Scorpius, watching as discomfort and pain crossed his lover's striking face before being replaced with satisfaction. As he moved the finger in and out, Scorpius's breathing became shallow and his hips raised to meet every movement Al made. His grey eyes pleaded with Al until he added another finger and then a third. It was when he scissored his fingers that Scorpius cried out in shock and pleasure, "Ungh! _There_! Now, Al. Please. I love you. I need you. Please. Now!" He begged, and this time, Al didn't deny him.

He poured some more oil in his hand and stroked himself, making sure he was slick enough to ease painlessly into Scorpius. He swore as he pushed deeper and deeper into Scorpius, more than a little unprepared for how hot and tight the channel would be. When he was all the way inside he paused, as much to give time for Scorpius to adjust as to give time for himself to cool down enough to do this properly.

When Scorpius's fingers dug into his back, he knew it was time. He didn't even bother trying to start slow. Instead he pulled back nearly completely and then slammed back into Scorpius. Scorpius screamed, and Al thanked Merlin for the fact that they had thought to cast a silencing and privacy charm when they entered the room. He continued to pound Scorpius into the mattress, loving the way his lover gripped him, some primal part of him revelling in the fact that he was filling his lover, marking him in a way he hadn't done so far.

Scorpius just felt. He felt the way Al made him whole, he felt full and bursting with joy, he felt pleasure the likes of which he'd never known before. He felt completely and utterly in love, and he felt Al's love.

"Close." He cried out before biting down on Al's shoulder. A moment later he came, his orgasm the most intense he had ever experienced. Al hadn't even touched him. As Al continued to pound into him, hitting his prostrate in just the right way, he felt his dick stir once more and nearly sobbed at the amount of pleasure he felt. When Al's hand closed over his now hard length, Scorpius cried out, still sensitive from his previous orgasm. It took only a few strokes to make him come again, and this time he clenched around Al, milking him dry as Al buried his face in his neck.

"That was…" Scorpius mumbled, dazed and exhausted, his fingers combing through Al's dark hair as he searched for the right word before giving up and nuzzling his lover's cheek. "I can't think."

"I can't move." Was Al's response as he panted against the skin of Scorpius's neck.

"Mmm." Scorpius smiled, making himself clench lazily around the bit of Al that was still inside him making his boyfriend release a choked moan, "I'm definitely going to be feeling that for the next few days." He tugged on Al's hair so his boyfriend's head lifted to meet his gaze, "At least until we can do it again." His smile turned mischievous.

Al chuckled, shifting off of his lover and moving to lie behind him, "Was that what this was about? You don't want me to go?"

"I will never want you to go when going means leaving me behind." Scorpius murmured, turning to face Al, bringing a hand up to rest on his cheek, grey eyes warm with love.

Al sighed, leaning forward so their noses touched and lips brushed, "You're with me wherever I go, love. I'll carry you in my heart. Always." An adorably embarrassed smile curved his lips as his cheeks flushed with colour.

Scorpius laughed, eyes lighting up with delight as he moved to cuddle closer to his lover, "Look who's being gooey for a change!"

"Only for you." Al whispered, wrapping his arms around Scorpius and slowly drifting off to sleep.

Scorpius watched him for a long moment, before sighing happily and letting his eyes close as well. If this was what he was going to be looking at first thing in the morning and the last thing at night for the rest of his life, his life was going to be bloody brilliant.

* * *

 **Ahhh :) I'm a bit sad to see this story end. You all have been amazing readers and your reviews encouraged me to keep writing so, thank you.**

 **Because you're so awesome, I'm posting the epilogue now as well. This is my last author note and I'd like to ask you all, as always, to read and review.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


	21. Epilogue: 500 People

Disclaimer: I only own the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.

* * *

 _500 People_

Scorpius eyed his boyfriend of five years, licking his lips unconsciously as he took in the way the charcoal grey dress robes enhanced and showcased Al's long, lean body.

"Don't even think about it." Al said sharply, catching his eye in the mirror.

Scorpius pouted in a way he knew Al found irresistible, "But you look so delicious." He sidled up to Al, reaching out to wrap his arms around his Slytherin's waist.

Al scowled, turning around to glare at his lover, "You will not touch me if you know what's good for you." He warned, deftly avoiding Scorpius's reaching hands, "You _know_ how important today is."

Scorpius sighed, acknowledging the truth of Al's words. He didn't drop his hands though. Instead he wrapped his arms around Al anyway and pulled him close, kissing him softly when he was close enough. Al allowed it, all but melting into the embrace. "Did I tell you how proud I am of you?"

Al smiled slightly, his green eyes alight, "Only around six hundred times."

"Hmm." Scorpius pretended to frown, "Only that many times? I was aiming for a thousand, at least. I suppose I'll just have to tell you again." His lips curved in a grin as Al chuckled, leaning forward to rest his forehead against Al's, "I'm so proud of you, love."

Al didn't reply. He only shifted forward so his lips slanted against Scorpius's, drawing him into a deep, tongue-curling kiss that let the Gryffindor know just how much Al appreciated him.

Scorpius sighed as Al finally ended the kiss, pulling away from him to check his hair one last time before reaching for his coat. "I suppose we ought to leave now. We don't want them to be giving the award away to someone else just because we're late."

Al snorted, "I'm sure they're just looking for a reason to not give it to me." He agreed, "It's only because your father refused to accept the credit for the potion that they even came to me."

Scorpius's eyes flashed with anger at the self-deprecating tone he hadn't heard in so long, "Hey! You deserve this award. You deserve the credit for creating that potion. All my father did was advise you. If anyone thinks otherwise, they're idiots." His expression made it clear he included Al in the group he had just termed 'idiots'.

Al smiled softly at the edge in Scorpius's voice, reaching up to caress the Gryffindor's cheek before placing a soft kiss on his lips, "I love you."

Usually, Scorpius would have melted at those words. He would have drawn Al close and snogged him senseless. But at that moment, Scorpius only felt irritation. Tonight was Al's night and for whatever reason, Al was determined to be unhappy. Well, he wouldn't stand for it. Not tonight.

So, making his irritation clear, he did not react to Al's softly spoken declaration. Instead, he cleared his throat and held out his hand, "Let's go. We don't want to be late."

Frowning slightly, knowing Scorpius's foul mood was his fault, Al nodded. He put his hand in Scorpius's and both of them apparated to the venue for the evening. The Minister of Magic's residence.

* * *

"How are you feeling? Nervous? I'd be nervous. Oh Merlin, I _am_ nervous. I can't believe you're going to do this Al!" Fran squealed, after tugging her friend away to one corner of the ballroom they were to have the ceremony in. It was a large open space at the moment, allowing invitees to mingle and socialise, but in another half hour, it would be filled with chairs and tables, complete with place cards. Damien sighed, rolling his eyes at his wife, sharing an exasperated look with Al.

"Of course I'm bloody nervous!" Al growled, shaking his best friend off, "And you aren't helping."

James came up behind him, clapping him on the shoulder, "Baby brother! Man of the hour! How are you feeling? And why does Scor look like he ate a lemon?"

"I might have pissed him off before we left the house." Al admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

Fran groaned, "Oh Al! Only you would piss off the guy you were proposing to an hour before you proposed in front of five hundred people."

Al choked on his sip of wine, making James hit him on the back, "Wh-What?! Five hundred? The Minister said it would be an intimate gathering!"

"Well, five hundred people _is_ probably an intimate gathering to the Minister of Magic." Lily quipped as she joined their conversation, "So Al, think he'll say yes?"

James snorted, "Of course he'll say yes. Scorpius has been in love with Al since he was eleven."

"Five hundred people." Al muttered, green eyes wide.

"What's he mumbling about?" Rose asked, frowning as she and Frank stepped up to the loosely formed circle around Al.

Al turned to glare at her, "Five hundred people!" He cried before storming off.

All of them blinked, looking at one another. "Reckon we broke him?"

"If Scorpius finds out we talked Al out of proposing to him, he will kill us." James muttered, going pale.

Everyone murmured their agreements, eyebrows furrowed worriedly. Al would propose tonight as planned, wouldn't he?

* * *

"There you are!" Harry exclaimed, finally spotting his elusive second son hiding on the balcony. "Everything is almost set inside. What are you doing standing out here?"

"Are there really five hundred people?" Al asked his father, green eyes begging Harry Potter to say no.

Harry cleared his throat uncomfortably, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck, a gesture Al recognised well. He groaned, "Oh Merlin, I can't do this."

Harry frowned, "You can't receive the award because there are five hundred people here? That seems a bit extreme, don't you think?"

"You don't get it, Dad! This isn't about the stupid award!" Al cried, throwing his arms up in frustration.

Harry's green eyes filled with confusion, "It isn't?"

"I'm going to propose to Scorpius tonight. When I accept my award."

"Oh." Understanding, Harry's jaw dropped open, "Oh!"

He shuffled forward and put his arm around his son's shoulders, "Um, so, you _are_ still doing it, right?"

"I want to." Al admitted, "I love him. And he's stuck by me; put up with so much of my crap. Merlin, he's more than I'll ever deserve, but for whatever reason, he wants me." Al let out a helpless laugh, "He wants me, and I'm not about to let him get away."

Harry grinned widely, so profoundly happy that his son had found someone he loved so passionately. "So you know what you have to do, don't you?"

Al groaned unhappily, "Five hundred people."

Harry laughed, pushing his son towards the ballroom which was now filled with circular tables and chairs all clothed in white and gold, elegant flower arrangements standing at the centre of each table. "Come on. It's time to head in." He gave his son a quick hug at the doorway, "And don't worry. He's going to say yes."

* * *

"We are here tonight to honour someone who has forever changed the lives of several families. For the better. Someone who has been working diligently and tirelessly for the past three years. Someone who, I have on good authority, cancelled several dates and evenings with the love of his life because he was on the verge of some breakthrough or the other. His partner was not amused." Here Neville Longbottom paused, grinning as the audience chuckled.

Al felt his pulse begin to quicken as he swallowed nervously. His fingers fidgeted on the table restlessly until Scorpius reached out and placed a hand over his, lacing their fingers together. He relaxed slightly, turning to look at the love of his life and smiling ruefully. He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Scorpius chuckled, leaning forward to kiss his cheek. "I forgive you." He whispered before pulling away. Then it was Al's turn to chuckle. How Scorpius had known what he had been about to say was beyond him. The Gryffindor constantly unnerved him by reading him too well. He hoped what he was going to do tonight would really be a surprise to Scorpius. Merlin, how would he react?

And just like that his nerves were back.

"Everyone in this room knows my story." Neville continued, "You know what happened to my parents. The horrors they faced and lived through only to lose their sanity at the end of it all. The wizard we are honouring today made it so I could meet my parents — my real parents, not the shells they had become — for the first time last week." Gasps echoed around the room as several heads turned to stare at Al, suddenly seeming to see him in a new light.

"Albus Severus Potter is a wizard who has spent his entire life in the limelight. He has been judged harshly for things that are no fault of his own, and condemned by wizards for the choices he has made in his life. He was well within his right to turn his back on the wizarding community and allow it to fend for itself. And yet, he dedicated a large amount of time and effort to help make your lives, all our lives, better. He deserves the honour of receiving an Order of Merlin First Class for creating a cure for all wizards suffering from long-term effects of the _Crucio_ curse. I invite Albus onstage to receive his medal from the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt."

Al didn't move until Scorpius stood and pulled him up onto his feet. The introduction given by his Uncle Neville had moved him and the thundering applause that followed had thrown him. He finally began to make his way up onto the stage, feeling his hands tremble as he tried to contain the overwhelming emotion within him. He was a Slytherin and he refused to blubber when he accepted the award.

With that thought firmly in place, he glided across the stage to stand before the Minister of Magic. He had met Kingsley Shacklebolt several times over the years, seeing as how the man was a good friend of his father's, but he had never really spent any time with him. He shook the man's hand, allowing him to place the green ribboned medal around his neck. And then it was time for him to speak.

Al used the _sonorus_ charm so his voice would be heard and looked out into the crowd. Every single face looked back at him, expressions tinted with awe and disbelief. He spotted his family, spread out on seven large tables, beaming back at him. He caught his father's eye and grinned, before looking to Scorpius.

His Gryffindor sat in front, long golden hair loose at his request, grey eyes warm and gooey, just the way he loved them. Scorpius's lips curved in a bemused smile as he realised Al was staring at him, and he gestured with his hands for his lover to get on with his acceptance speech.

Al chuckled, "Uncle Neville did a great job of making me out to be some kind of hero, but that really isn't me. Yes, I worked on a potion that will cure wizards suffering from long-term effects of the _Crucio_ curse, but I can't say I didn't do it for selfish reasons. The war against Voldemort was easy to move on from for some, but it left everlasting marks for others. Loved ones killed, injured or mentally unstable from the horrors they had faced." He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, "I couldn't do a thing about the ones who were dead, but from a very young age, I knew I wanted to work to heal the ones who could be healed. Potions as a subject always appealed to me. It gave me the liberty to experiment, to create, and above all to help. So that's what I've done here. I wanted to help the people I love, and in a small way I have succeeded." Another thundering applause sounded, and everyone, including Scorpius stood, thinking that was the end of his speech.

He took in a deep breath, waving for people to sit. Befuddled, his audience of _five hundred people_ sat. Scorpius blinked up at him, adorably confused.

"Uncle Neville mentioned that in the years I worked to perfect this potion, this cure, I ended up neglecting the love of my life. I did. I neglected him terribly, and still somehow, he put up with me. His endless patience where I'm concerned never fails to astound me. I've been told by several people that I'm a hard person to live with, and yet he does it every day with a smile, without complaint. He's here today, and I would like him to come join me up here. Scorpius?"

Scorpius looked up at Al, stunned and alarmed. What in the wizarding world was he up to? Had he lost his mind?! He would have remained sitting, staring up at his boyfriend dumbstruck, if his mother hadn't nudged him from behind.

Stumbling to his feet, Scorpius made his way up onto the stage in a bit of a daze. Once he was standing in front of Al, one hundred percent sure that this was the most surreal experience in his life, his Slytherin proved him wrong by going down on one knee.

Scorpius's heart stuttered in his chest as he stopped breathing for a moment. OhMerlinOhMerlinOhMerlin! Was he dreaming? Was Al really down on one knee with a ring in his hand? It was a very nice ring, plain gold with a large ruby inset.

"Breathe, Scor." Al sounded like he was about to laugh, and his words reached Scorpius just before he passed out from lack of oxygen.

He inhaled sharply, a trembling hand reaching down to circle his lover's wrist and pull him up onto his feet. "No kneeling." He whispered, "Just ask."

Al smiled at that, green eyes shining with love, "Will you marry me?"

Scorpius launched himself into Al's arms, wrapped around him completely, arms and legs, "Merlin, yes!"

Al, prepared for this, caught him, managing to hold on to the ring as well, somehow.

The room was on its feet, loud cheers sounding from the Potter/Weasley family and the couple's friends. Al and Scorpius heard nothing though. Scorpius pulled back to frame Al's face in his hands, "I love you."

Al laughed, kissing him fiercely before slowly letting him down and onto his own two feet. He reached for Scorpius's hand and slipped on the gold ring. Scorpius surprised him by reaching into his coat and pulling out a little black box of his own. The Gryffindor laughed at his fiancé's stunned expression.

"I was going to propose once we got home." He explained, pulling out a silver ring with a large emerald inset. He slipped it onto Al's finger and hugged him tight, "I have forever with you now."

Al grinned, "You always had forever with me, love. Will it be enough?" The _sonorus_ charm had worn off now, and the conversation was just between the two of them.

Scorpius's grey eyes lit mischievously, "Hmm. Maybe not. You'll have to love me in your next life as well."

"And every life after that." Al swore solemnly, drawing his fiancé close and snogging him without a care for the fact that five hundred people were watching.

* * *

 **~Living to Laugh and Love**


End file.
